The Psychology of Interrogations and Confessions : A Handbook (Wiley Series in Psychology of Crime, Policing and Law)

The Psychology of Interrogations and Confessions A Handbook Gisli H. Gudjonsson Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College,...

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The Psychology of Interrogations and Confessions A Handbook Gisli H. Gudjonsson Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College, London, UK

The Psychology of Interrogations and Confessions

Wiley Series in

The Psychology of Crime, Policing and Law Series Editors Graham Davies University of Leicester, UK

and

Ray Bull University of Portsmouth, UK

The Wiley series in the Psychology of Crime, Policing and Law publishes concise and integrative reviews on important emerging areas of contemporary research. The purpose of the series is not merely to present research findings in a clear and readable form, but also to bring out their implications for both practice and policy. In this way, it is hoped the series will not only be useful to psychologists but also to all those concerned with crime detection and prevention, policing, and the judicial process. Current titles of interest in the series include Offender Profiling: Theory, Research and Practice Edited by Janet L. Jackson and Debra A. Bekerian Psychology, Law and Eyewitness Testimony Peter B. Ainsworth Detecting Lies and Deceit: The Psychology of Lying and the Implications for Professional Practice Aldert Vrij Children’s Testimony: A Handbook of Psychological Research and Forensic Practice Edited by Helen L. Westcott, Graham M. Davies and Ray H. C. Bull Stalking and Psychosexual Obsession: Psychological Perspectives for Prevention, Policing and Treatment Edited by Julian Boon and Lorraine Sheridan The Psychology of Interrogations and Confessions: A Handbook Gisli H. Gudjonsson

The Psychology of Interrogations and Confessions A Handbook Gisli H. Gudjonsson Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College, London, UK

C 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, Copyright The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex PO19 8SQ, England

Telephone (+44) 1243 779777 Email (for orders and customer service enquiries): [email protected] Visit our Home Page on www.wileyeurope.com or www.wiley.com All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except under the terms of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 or under the terms of a licence issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 4LP, UK, without the permission in writing of the Publisher. Requests to the Publisher should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons Ltd, The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex PO19 8SQ, England, or emailed to [email protected], or faxed to (+44) 1243 770571. This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold on the understanding that the Publisher is not engaged in rendering professional services. If professional advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought. Other Wiley Editorial Offices John Wiley & Sons Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, USA Jossey-Bass, 989 Market Street, San Francisco, CA 94103-1741, USA Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH, Boschstr. 12, D-69469 Weinheim, Germany John Wiley & Sons Australia Ltd, 33 Park Road, Milton, Queensland 4064, Australia John Wiley & Sons (Asia) Pte Ltd, 2 Clementi Loop #02-01, Jin Xing Distripark, Singapore 129809 John Wiley & Sons Canada Ltd, 22 Worcester Road, Etobicoke, Ontario, Canada M9W 1L1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Gudjonsson, Gisli H. The psychology of interrogations and confessions : a handbook / Gisli H. Gudjonsson. p. cm.—(Wiley series in the psychology of crime, policing and law) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-471-49136-5—ISBN 0-470-84461-2 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Police questioning—Psychological aspects. 2. Confession (Law)—Psychological aspects. 3. Confession (Law)—Great Britain. 4. Confession (Law)—United States. I. Title. II. Wiley series in psychology of crime, policing, and law. HV8073 .G889 2003 363.2 54—dc21

2002151145

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN 0-471-49136-5 (hbk) 0-470-84461-2 (pbk) Typeset in 10/12pt Century Schoolbook by TechBooks, New Delhi, India Printed and bound in Great Britain by TJ International Ltd, Padstow, Cornwall This book is printed on acid-free paper responsibly manufactured from sustainable forestry in which at least two trees are planted for each one used for paper production.

þora Hannesdottir (b. 2.6.1918, d. 6.2.2000).

Contents About the Author Series Preface Preface Acknowledgements Introduction

xiii xv xvii xix 1

PART I INTERROGATIONS AND CONFESSIONS 1. Interrogation Tactics and Techniques Police Training Manuals The Reid Technique The Format and Recording of the Confession The Context of the Interrogation American Research on Interrogation How Things Can Go Wrong During Interrogation Conclusions

7 7 10 21 24 31 34 36

2. Interrogation in Britain Irving’s Studies Softley’s Study Walsh’s Study Research at the University of Kent Baldwin’s Study British Training Manuals Conclusions

38 39 43 43 44 48 51 55

3. Persons at Risk During Interviews in Police Custody: the Royal Commission Studies The 1993 Royal Commission Study by Gudjonsson and Colleagues Who Confesses? Detainees’ Legal Rights

57 58 69 71

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Contents

General Conclusions

73

4. The Identification and Measurement of ‘Oppressive’ Police Interviewing Tactics in Britain. John Pearse and Gisli H. Gudjonsson Background to the Research The Cases Analysed Methodology Interview Tactics Suspects’ Responses Methodological Issues Statistical Procedures Application of the Framework to Individual Cases The Heron Murder Case The Miller Murder Case Court Outcome Conclusions

75 77 79 80 83 85 86 87 96 106 112 114

5. Why do Suspects Confess? Theories

115

Factors Inhibiting Confession Theoretical Models of Confession Conclusions

115 117 128

75

6. Why do Suspects Confess? Empirical Findings How Important are Confessions? How Commonly do Suspects Confess? Factors Associated with Admissions and Denials Self-Report Studies into Why Suspects Confess Conclusions

130 130 133 140 151 156

7. Miscarriages of Justice and False Confessions Miscarriages of Justice Studies of Miscarriages of Justice The Leo–Ofshe Study Some Notorious British Cases Conclusions

158 158 159 164 166 172

8. The Psychology of False Confession: Research and Theoretical Issues Definitions of False Confession The Frequency of False Confessions False, Retracted and Disputed Confessions The Innocent Pleading Guilty The Broader Context of False Confessions The Causes of False Confessions Theoretical Implications of the Different Types of False Confession

173 174 174 178 184 186 193 197

Contents

ix

The Ofshe–Leo Model of Confessions Differences between True and False Confessions A Proposed Modified Framework Recovered Memory and False Confession Conclusions

203 208 211 212 215

9. The Psychology of False Confession: Case Examples Voluntary False Confessions Pressured–Compliant False Confessions Pressured–Internalized False Confessions Conclusions

217 218 224 233 242

PART II LEGAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL ASPECTS 10. The English Law on Confessions The Admissibility and Reliability of Confession Evidence The Voire Dire Issues Affecting Vulnerable Defendants The Admissibility of Expert Evidence Conclusions

247 248 258 259 275 281

11. The American Law on Confessions Gisli H. Gudjonsson and Lorca Morello

283

The Basic Law of Confessions Voluntariness and Mentally Vulnerable Suspects Challenging a Confession in Court Differences between English and American Law and Practice Conclusions

283 288 293 304 306

12. The Psychological Assessment The Assessment Framework Psychological Vulnerabilities Learning Disability as a Vulnerability The Court Report and Oral Evidence Conclusions

308 309 316 320 327 330

13. Suggestibility: Historical and Theoretical Aspects Theoretical Approaches Some Characteristics of Suggestion and Suggestibility Brief Historical Background to Suggestibility The Classification of Suggestibility Theories of Suggestibility Reinforcement and Suggestibility Suggestibility: a State or a Trait? Definition of Interrogative Suggestibility The Gudjonsson–Clark Theoretical Model Implications of the Model and Hypotheses

332 334 335 336 338 340 343 343 344 347 352

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Contents

External Evaluation of the Model Conclusions

353 358

14. Interrogative Suggestibility: Empirical Findings The Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scales Suggestibility and Hypnotic Susceptibility Compliance Acquiescence Correlations between Suggestibility, Compliance and Acquiescence Suggestibility and Gender Suggestibility and Ethnic Background Suggestibility and Age Suggestibility and Intelligence Suggestibility and Memory Suggestibility and Anxiety Suggestibility and Impulsivity Suggestibility and the MMPI-2 Suggestibility and Sleep Deprivation Suggestibility: Dissociation and Fantasy Proneness Suggestibility and Instructional Manipulation Suggestibility and the Experimenter Effect Suggestibility and Social Desirability Suggestibility and Coping Strategies Suggestibility and Assertiveness Suggestibility and Self-Esteem Suggestibility and Locus of Control Suggestibility and Field Dependence Suspiciousness and Anger Suggestibility and Test Setting Suggestibility and Previous Convictions Police Interviewing and Suggestibility Resisters and Alleged False Confessors Suggestibility and False Confessions Suggestibility and Eyewitness Testimony Suggestibility and Recovered Memory Conclusions

360 361 368 370 376 378 379 380 380 381 384 385 388 389 389 390 391 392 394 395 396 396 398 399 400 402 403 403 404 407 410 411 412

15. The Effects of Drugs and Alcohol Upon the Reliability of Testimony The Extent of the Problem Theoretical Perspectives The Effects of Intoxication and Withdrawal The Effects of Alcohol Withdrawal on Interrogative Suggestibility False Confessions to Murder by a Heroin Addict Conclusions

415 416 418 421 428 430 432

PART III BRITISH COURT OF APPEAL CASES 16. The Court of Appeal

437

Contents

The Beginning of Expert Psychological Testimony Conclusions 17. The ‘Guildford Four’ and the ‘Birmingham Six’. Gisli H. Gudjonsson and J. A. C. MacKeith The Guildford Four The Birmingham Six Conclusions

xi

440 441 445 445 452 456

18. Psychological Vulnerability Engin Raghip—The Beginning: Landmark Decision for Psychology Jacqueline Fletcher—Unidentified Borderline Intelligence Judith Ward—Personality Disorder David MacKenzie—Inability to Distinguish Facts from Fantasy Idris Ali—Pathological Lying George Long—Clinical Depression Patrick Kane—Anxiety and Compliance Andrew Evans—Misdiagnosed Psychogenic Amnesia John Roberts—Abnormal Compliance Ashley King—Abnormal Suggestibility and Compliance Darren Hall—Disorder in the Absence of a Psychiatric Diagnosis Ian Hay Gordon—Exploitation of Sexuality Peter Fell—Poor Self-Esteem Conclusions

495 499 506 512

19. Police Impropriety

514

Stephen Miller Alfred Allen (the ‘UDR Four’) The Carl Bridgewater Case Derek Bentley Conclusions 20. Misleading Special Knowledge Stefan Kiszko The Darvell Brothers Donald Pendleton Conclusions

458 458 468 470 472 473 476 479 482 492 493

515 517 519 520 522 523 523 530 533 537

PART IV FOREIGN CASES OF DISPUTED CONFESSIONS 21. Four High Profile American Cases Waneta Hoyt Joe Giarratano

541 541 550

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Contents

Henry Lee Lucas John Wille General Conclusions

554 563 572

22. Canadian and Israeli Cases A Canadian Case of Non-Custodial Interrogation An Israeli Terrorist Case General Conclusions

573 573 582 589

23. Murder in Norway: a False Belief Leading to a False Confession Background to the Case Pre-Trial (1997) Psychological Evaluation The First Trial The Psychological Evaluation Prior to the Appeal Interviews with Informants Mr A’s Strengths and Vulnerabilities The Interrogation and Confinement Repression and Psychogenic Amnesia The Appeal Conclusions

590 590 594 595 596 602 605 606 608 609 611

Conclusions General Comments and Conclusions Interrogation Psychological Vulnerability True Confessions Retracted and False Confessions

615 615 619 621 622 623

Appendix

628

References

631

Author Index

663

Subject Index

672

About the Author Gisli Gudjonsson is a Professor of Forensic Psychology at the Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College, London, and Head of the Forensic Psychology Services at the Maudsley Hospital. He is a Fellow of the British Psychological Society and an Honorary Fellow of the Icelandic Psychological Society. In 2001 he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Medicine from the University of Iceland in recognition for his research in the field of forensic psychiatry and psychology. Gisli has published extensively in the areas of psychological vulnerability, false confession and police interviewing. He pioneered the empirical measurement of suggestibility and provided expert evaluation in a number of high profile cases, including those of the Guildford Four, the Birmingham Six, the Tottenham Three, the Cardiff Three, Jill Dando murder case, Kenneth Erskine (the ‘Stockwell strangler’), Derek Bentley, the UDR Four and ‘IRA funeral murders’ cases (both in Northern Ireland), Henry Lee Lucas and John Wille (USA), and the Birgitte Tengs and Orderud cases (Norway). He acts as a consultant on cases both for prosecution and defence. Gisli is the author of The Psychology of Interrogations, Confessions and Testimony (John Wiley & Sons, 1992), The Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scales Manual (Psychology Press, 1997), Forensic Psychology: A Guide to Practice (Routledge, 1998, jointly written with Lionel Haward), and The Causes and Cures of Criminality (Plenum Press, 1989, jointly written with Hans Eysenck). He is the co-editor-in-chief of Personality and Individual Differences.

Series Preface The Wiley Series in the Psychology of Crime, Policing and Law publishes single author and edited reviews of emerging areas of contemporary research. The purpose of this series is not merely to present research findings in a clear and readable form, but also to bring out their implications for both practice and policy. The series will be useful not only to psychologists, but also to all those concerned with crime detection and prevention, policing and the judicial process. The first book in this series was The Psychology of Interrogations, Confessions and Testimony by Gisli Gudjonsson, published in 1992. This seminal work was recognized quickly as a modern classic of the forensic psychology literature, translated into a number of foreign languages and frequently cited, in both learned papers and the courts of law. As the title implied, the book dealt broadly with the issues surrounding the interrogation of both witnesses and suspects and the real dangers of false confession. Professor Gudjonsson’s new book, The Psychology of Interrogations and Confessions: A Handbook deals specifically with the area which is now synonymous with his name; it summarizes much new research and describes many cases of disputed or false confessions with which he has been associated. Much of the new research has involved the Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scales (GSSs), a measure of suggestibility and compliance, which can be administered to persons where the issue of false confession arises. Equally importantly, expert testimony from Professor Gudjonsson, based on the results of these tests, his observations of the suspect’s behaviour and the circumstances leading up to a confession have been admitted as evidence in high-profile criminal cases in the United Kingdom, the United States and continental Europe. The admission of such evidence in the English courts is a major achievement for forensic psychology in general and Professor Gudjonsson in particular. For a long time, the courts have clung to the judgment, enunciated in R. v. Turner (1975), that implied that the courts had no reason to listen to expert testimony from psychologists or psychiatrists on such matters as these were well within the common experience of jury members. It was only when judges were confronted with unmistakable instances of apparently normal people who, when confined to a police station for questioning for just a few hours, could confess fulsomely to crimes they could not have committed, that the united front against such expert evidence began to bend and crack. In the process, miscarriages of justice, some

xvi

Series Preface

of them dating back decades, were finally redressed, thanks in major part to the insights of Professor Gudjonsson. Professor Gudjonsson’s book is divided into four sections. Part I summarizes much research and theory on interrogation and confession and notably in a chapter co-authored with John Pearse, an experienced police officer, illustrates how far the British police have come in their recognition of the impact of oppressive interviewing practices on false and misleading confessions. Part II summarizes much work on the GSS, which has been widely taken up by researchers in several countries, and summarizes the legal position on the admissibility of confession evidence in Britain and the United States. Part III covers appeal court cases in the United Kingdom and reveals an impressive readiness on the part of the courts in recent years to listen to new psychological evidence and to attempt to redress in part the grievances of the falsely convicted. Part IV follows the judicial trail to the United States, Canada and Norway and uncovers striking parallels between the interrogation processes leading to false confessions in the UK and those perpetrated elsewhere. However, there appears to be a disturbing lack of readiness on the part of many of these judiciaries to address these issues and provide legal remedies. The Psychology of Interrogations and Confessions: A Handbook will be invaluable to all psychologists who work with offenders and the courts and provides an object lesson in how psychologists, through their writings and research, can have a real and profound influence on public policy. It will also be of interest to lawyers and lay persons, who will find, in the striking case material and accessible descriptions of research, reason enough as to how our judicial system can err. GRAHAM DAVIES University of Leicester March 2002

Preface The Psychology of Interrogations, Confessions and Testimony was published in 1992 and has been reprinted on several occasions. It was extensively reviewed in the legal, psychological, psychiatric, and medical literature. Its publication brought the issue of false confessions from a scientific perspective to the attention of the legal, psychological and psychiatric professions. It provided a muchneeded comprehensive and authoritative text for practitioners, researchers and academics. The book had a major impact in Britain and abroad, which can be seen from numerous legal judgments. Reviewers’ comments on the original book provided invaluable information about how the book might be improved and I have taken this seriously into consideration when writing the current book. Ronald Fisher, in Contemporary Psychology, pointed out that my attempt at completeness on occasions led me to describe cases and introduce material that was not central to the main focus of the book. Some other reviewers expressed similar views and suggested that I focus more exclusively on disputed confessions, and provide a more extensive analysis of how expert opinion in this area has affected the judicial process. This is what I have attempted to do in the current book. In addition, since the publication of the original book, the number of cases of disputed confessions that I have assessed has more than doubled and I have testified in well over 100 criminal cases where confession evidence was disputed, including many high profile murder cases in the appellant courts in Britain and abroad. All the important cases are reviewed in this book and the psychological contribution and legal implications discussed. There has been increasing recognition in recent years that false confessions occur and no legal system should ignore the risk of false confession. In order to prevent future miscarriages of justice, complacency, lack of open-mindedness, ignorance, unwillingness to accept mistakes and judicial cover-up must be replaced by a more positive approach to a problem that will not go away unless we actively confront it. There are various steps that can be taken to reduce the risk of false confessions and prevent miscarriages of justice. These steps, including judicial, educational and psychological means, are equally applicable to legal systems of Britain, USA, Australia and on the continent of Europe. When I planned this book it was originally commissioned by Wiley as a second edition of my previous book. As I began to write however, it became evident that the field had expanded dramatically and this development has continued as the

xviii

Preface

book has developed. As a result, it is largely a new book rather than a second edition of the previous one. Some themes have had to be omitted from the current book to accommodate new material. This includes some of the basic principles and theory of interviewing, child witnesses, psychological techniques for enhancing memory retrieval and evaluating testimony and documents. There are now other books available that make these chapters unnecessary and these will be indicated in the text, as appropriate. Accompanying new and important court case material, and important legal changes since the original book, there has been considerably more research into police interrogation tactics, psychological vulnerabilities and false confessions. All the material that remains from the original book has been re-written and up-dated to accommodate these new findings. The current book is larger and more substantial than the original and the focus more international. GISLI H. GUDJONSSON

Acknowledgements I am grateful to Professor Graham Davies, the Series Editor, and to my wife, Julia, for their continued encouragement and support throughout my writing this book. They both read and commented on drafts of the individual chapters. Other persons who provided helpful comments on one or more of the individual draft chapters are Professor Ursula Bentele, Sir Louis Blom-Cooper Ian Donaldson QC, Richard Joselson, Denny LeBoeuf, Professor Richard Leo, Dr James MacKeith, Paula Montonye, Lorca Morello, Dr John Pearse, Susan Rutter, John Wagstaff and Dr Susan Young. I am grateful to Sarah Medford for her proofreading of the draft manuscript. Thanks also goes to the people who consented to my writing up their cases. Lastly, I am indebted to John Wiley & Sons for allowing me to produce a manuscript that is longer than originally contracted for, so that detailed case illustrations and important recent legal judgments could be provided.

Introduction On a Saturday morning in the early part of 1987 a 17-year-old youth was arrested and taken to a police station for questioning. A few hours later he had confessed in great detail as to how he had sexually molested and then murdered two elderly women before leaving their house. The following day the youth confessed again to the murders, in the presence of a solicitor. In spite of the lack of forensic evidence to link the youth to the murders, the case against the youth was potentially strong because (a) eye witnesses who knew the youth by sight had placed him near the scene and (b) during interrogation the youth had apparently given the police detailed and specific information about the crime, which the police believed could only have been known by the murderer. On the strength of the available evidence the youth’s case was referred to the Crown Court, during which time he was remanded in custody. The case had all the hallmarks of a successful crime detection, which would result in a conviction for two murders and sexual molestation. Whilst on remand in prison the youth consistently told his solicitor and his family that he was innocent of the crimes he had been charged with. He claimed that his self-incriminating confession was due to persuasive police questioning. Matters had been made worse for the youth by the fact that during early detention in prison he had confessed to the murders to prison officers and to a fellow inmate. The youth clearly had been interviewed quite extensively and persuasively by the police officers, but he was a young man of reasonable education and without any obvious mental illness or handicap. On the face of it, the youth had confessed due to skilful interrogation carried out by experienced police officers who had reason to believe that he had committed the crimes. The murder enquiry was thus successfully conducted except for one important fact. The youth was innocent of the crimes with which he had been charged. While the youth was in prison on remand, the real murderer committed another very serious offence before being apprehended. This brief case history, which will be discussed in more detail in Chapter 9, is one of many that are used in this book to illustrate some of the processes and mechanisms involved in producing erroneous testimony, including a false confession. The terms ‘interview’ and ‘interrogation’, as applied to the police investigative process, imply some form of questioning, whether of a witness to a crime,

2

A Psychology of Interrogations and Confessions

a victim, a complainant or a suspect. Both are essentially a way of gathering information for use in further enquiries and perhaps judicial purposes. The term interrogation is more commonly used in the literature, and in police practice, to refer to the questioning of criminal suspects, whereas witnesses and victims are ‘interviewed’ (Rabon, 1992). Such a distinction is, however, quite an arbitrary one, and the term ‘investigative interviewing’ has been proposed to cover both the interviewing of witnesses and suspects in England. This term has now been incorporated into police training and its evaluation (Clarke & Milne, 2001; Williamson, 1994). The purpose of the book is to examine in detail the various aspects of investigative interviewing and to highlight the factors that influence the accuracy and completeness of the information collected. The emphasis is on the application of psychological knowledge and principles to investigative interviewing and confessions. The major issue addressed is to what extent psychological knowledge and principles can assist the police, psychologists, social workers, probation officers and the legal profession, in the gathering and evaluation of confession evidence. The book shows that during the past 20 years or so there have been major advances in psychological theory, research relevant to interrogations and confessions, the law pertaining to investigative interviewing and the admissibility of confession evidence, police training and the contribution of expert psychological and psychiatric testimony to criminal court proceedings. My previous book, The Psychology of Interrogations, Confessions, and Testimony (Gudjonsson, 1992a), provided a detailed discussion of scientific advances, and their implications, up to 1992. Since then, further psychological and legal developments have taken place and these are comprehensively discussed in this book. As far as children’s testimony is concerned, which was discussed at some length in my previous book, the recently edited book by Westcott, Davies and Bull (2002) gives a comprehensive coverage of the recent developments in the area. In view of the extensive amount of material presented in this book, which comprises 23 individual chapters, it is separated into four main parts. In Part I, entitled ‘Interrogations and Confessions’, the theoretical, research and practical aspects of interrogation and confessions are reviewed. There are nine chapters in this section of the book. The first four focus on interrogation, its contexts and the tactics used by the police in the USA and Britain. Empirical research findings are presented into interrogation tactics and the psychological vulnerability of detainees. Two chapters enquire into the reasons why suspects confess to crimes they have committed. Both theoretical perspectives and empirical evidence are presented. This part of the book concludes with three chapters where the focus is on miscarriages of justice and false confessions. Relevant research and theoretical aspects of false confessions are discussed and case examples are presented of different types of false confession. One of the chapters in Part I, ‘The identification and measurement of “oppressive” police interviewing tactics in Britain’, is co-authored with Dr John Pearse, a senior police officer at New Scotland Yard, with whom I have worked jointly on cases and conducted extensive research over the past 10 years.

Introduction

3

Part II, ‘Legal and Psychological Aspects’, consists of six chapters. It commences with a detailed discussion of the English and American confession law. Differences and similarities between the two legal systems and legal practice are highlighted. The chapter on the American law is co-authored with a New York attorney, Lorca Morello. After discussing the legal issues and practice there is a chapter on psychological assessment. The concepts of interrogative suggestibility, compliance and acquiescence, which have become increasingly important legally in the context of disputed confessions, are discussed in detail within the context of the relevant theoretical and empirical evidence. Part II concludes with a chapter on the effects of drugs and alcohol on the reliability of testimony. In this chapter a double murder case of the false confession of a heroin addict is presented. In Part III, ‘British Court of Appeal Cases’, the role of the Court of Appeal is discussed and 22 leading disputed confession cases in England and Northern Ireland are presented and the judgments evaluated. In all but one of the cases the convictions were quashed, often on the basis of fresh psychological or psychiatric testimony. In the one unsuccessful case, the House of Lords later quashed the appellant’s conviction and criticized the Court of Appeal’s decision to uphold the conviction. The cases demonstrate how the Court of Appeal views confession evidence and expert testimony and how its approach to such cases has developed over the past 12 years. I have carefully traced this development and will show how high court judges have become more sophisticated in the way in which they admit and rely on expert psychological and psychiatric testimony, particularly as it relates to psychological vulnerability. The legal criteria for admitting psychological evidence have broadened considerably. The courts are no longer restricted to admitting evidence where there is mental illness or learning disability. Personality disorder is now judged as a potential psychological vulnerability relevant to the reliability of confession evidence. Furthermore, personality traits, such as suggestibility, compliance and trait anxiety, when falling outside the normal range, are now regularly admitted into evidence to challenge the admissibility and the weight of confession evidence. The impact of psychological research and expert testimony on legal changes, police practice and legal judgments is a development unparalleled in the rest of the world (Gudjonsson, 2001). The cases of the ‘Guildford Four’ and the ‘Birmingham Six’ were the first to have a great impact on the English legal system. They brought the risk of false confession to the attention of the legal establishment and the public. The chapter on these two cases was prepared jointly with my psychiatrist colleague, Dr James MacKeith. We were both commissioned as experts to work on the cases prior to their successful appeal. We review these cases and present some of our medical and psychological findings. Part IV, ‘Foreign Cases of Disputed Confessions’, provides a detailed discussion of seven high profile cases from outside Britain. The cases demonstrate how different legal systems—American, Canadian, Israeli and Norwegian— approach, view and evaluate disputed confession evidence and expert testimony. As will be seen from reading these chapters, there is much to be learned from cases in different jurisdictions. The dangers of coercive interrogation

4


techniques, the risk of false confession and miscarriages of justice are of international importance and all judicial systems must take these seriously. In the final chapter of the book, ‘Conclusions’, I draw together the main findings from the other chapters and provide a conceptual framework for future work on investigative interviewing and confessions. This book is aimed primarily at practitioners involved with different aspects of investigative interviewing. This includes clinical psychologists and psychiatrists who have been asked by legal advocates to assist with the evaluation of the likely validity of self-incriminating statements, such as confessions. Detailed assessment techniques will be provided for this purpose, including the assessment of specific and idiosyncratic psychological states and traits. The relevant legal concepts, legal practice, Court of Appeal judgments and detailed case presentations, will be provided to assist expert witnesses in how to assess a wide range of cases of disputed confessions. Police officers will find many parts of the book directly applicable to their investigative work. The book is not a training manual for police officers on how to interview, but it does provide police officers with a further understanding of the processes involved in producing erroneous and misleading testimony. In addition, it identifies the circumstances under which information can be collected most effectively. At a policy level, the book has major implications for police training. Social workers and probation officers will find several of the chapters useful as they commonly have to interview and assess groups of individuals who need special care, such as persons with learning disabilities, the mentally ill, children and the sexually abused. The increased role of social workers as ‘appropriate adults’ during custodial interrogation in England and the criticism they have received in the past about their interviewing techniques of allegedly sexually abused children mean that this book is going to be particularly helpful for them. The legal profession will learn from the book what kinds of contribution clinical psychologists and psychiatrists can offer to judicial proceedings. Case histories will be used to illustrate specific points throughout the book and these provide an important insight into how the judicial system deals with the problems created by disputed confessions. Many of the findings highlighted in the book provide an important insight into safeguards against false confession. Finally, the combination of theoretical ideas, empirical findings, case histories and leading Court of Appeal judgments brings together knowledge that will also appeal to researchers and other academics. Hopefully, it will stimulate more research, both theoretical and practical, in an exciting field that is already rapidly expanding.

PART I

INTERROGATIONS AND CONFESSIONS

CHAPTER 1

Interrogation Tactics and Techniques The purpose of this chapter is to discuss the tactics and techniques advocated by practical interrogation manuals and the context in which interrogations occur. Nearly all published interrogation manuals originate in the USA (for a review see Leo, 1992, 1994). One exception is Walkley’s (1987) Police Interrogation. A Handbook for Investigators, which was the first manual written for British police officers. It was heavily influenced by traditional American interrogation manuals and never gained national support in Britain. In this chapter I shall discuss the nature of these techniques, their strengths and merits, and how their use can ‘go wrong’. Of course, there are a large number of interrogation manuals regularly published in the USA, with each author claiming special expertise in the field and offering advice to interrogators. It would be unrealistic to try to review all of these manuals. Undoubtedly, the most influential practical manual is the one written by Inbau, Reid and Buckley (1986). This manual has just been revised, up-dated and expanded (Inbau, Reid, Buckley & Jayne, 2001). Hundreds of thousands of investigators have received the training in their technique (Inbau et al., 2001). Their book has also influenced many other authors; thus the main focus of this chapter will be on this approach and its implications. Other relevant publications will be referred to at appropriate points and issues discussed.

POLICE TRAINING MANUALS Practical interrogation manuals are generally based on the extensive experience of interrogators and offer allegedly effective techniques for breaking down suspects’ resistance. The authors of these manuals argue that most criminal suspects are reluctant to confess because of the shame associated with what they have done and the fear of the legal consequences. In their view, a certain amount of pressure, deception, persuasion and manipulation is essential if the ‘truth’ is to be revealed. Furthermore, they view persuasive interrogation techniques as essential to police work and feel justified in using them. The degree of persuasion recommended varies in different manuals. One of the most crude and extreme forms of persuasion recommended in a modern interrogation

8


manual is in a book by Patrick McDonald (1993) entitled Make ’Em Talk! Principles of Military Interrogation, which states on the back cover: Every military has its ways of making subjects talk and this book takes you stepby-step through the most common, effective, and notorious methods used, including those favored by the Japanese, Germans, Koreans, Vietnamese, and Iraqis.

McDonald then goes on to describe how he recommends interrogators break down resistance and denials by inducing debilitation and exhaustion: If you have subjects under your total physical control, you can wear them down and make them easier to exploit and more compliant. One of the simplest methods to debilitate people physically is to severely limit their food intake or intermittently refuse them food altogether (p. 44).

Most other manuals (e.g. Inbau, Reid & Buckley, 1986; Inbau et al., 2001; Macdonald & Michaud, 1992; Rabon, 1992, 1994; Royal & Schutte, 1976; Stubbs & Newberry, 1998; Walkley, 1987) are more psychologically sophisticated than McDonald’s coercive guide to interrogators, but they rely to a varying degree on the processes of influence and persuasion. This reliance on persuasion is inevitable in view of the reluctance of many suspects to admit to their crimes or certain aspects of their crimes. There is an extensive literature on the psychology of persuasion, which demonstrates its potentially powerful influence in different contexts (Cialdini, 1993). Leo (1994) correctly points out that persuasion in the context of interrogation is the process of convincing suspects that their best interests are served by their making a confession. In order to achieve this objective the police may engage in a range of deception strategies. These include the following.

r

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Police officers concealing their identity while trying to obtain a confession (e.g. pretending to be a fellow prison inmate, befriending a person under false pretences, posing as a criminal). Such undercover operations are practised in some countries, for example, in Canada, the USA, and Britain. In Britain such an undercover operation went seriously wrong in the case of the famous murder of Rachel Nickell in 1992 on Wimbledon Common, South London (Britton, 1997; Fielder, 1994; Gudjonsson & Haward, 1998; Stagg & Kessler, 1999). In Britain, undercover police officers are not allowed legally to entrap people or coerce a confession out of them. In contrast, such undercover operations are commonly used in Canada to coerce confessions out of resistant suspects and they are allowed in evidence because they fall outside the legal framework of custodial interrogation (see Chapter 22). During interrogation the police may misrepresent the nature or seriousness of the offence (e.g. in a murder case by lying to the suspect that the victim is still alive and may talk, or implying that the death must have been an accident or unpremeditated). Employing trickery is, according to Leo (1994), the most common police deception during interrogation. This typically involves presenting the suspect with false evidence of guilt (e.g. falsely claiming that a co-defendant

Interrogation Tactics and Techniques

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has confessed, exaggerating the strength of evidence against the suspect, falsely claiming that the police are in possession of forensic or eyewitness evidence that indicates the suspect’s guilt or lying about the results from a polygraph test). There is a general reluctance among the authors of police interrogation manuals to accept the possibility that their recommended techniques could, in certain instances, make a suspect confess to a crime that he or she had not committed. Indeed, most interrogation manuals completely ignore this possibility. Some authors of interrogation manuals, for example Macdonald and Michaud (1992), at least acknowledge that false confessions do happen on occasions, but their understanding of false confessions is restricted to two main causes: ‘A wish for publicity and notoriety’ and ‘Forceful prolonged questioning with threats of violence’ (p. 7). This represents a very restricted view of false confessions. Macdonald and Michaud (1992), unlike Inbau, Reid and Buckley (1986), point to the dangers of using leading questions and recommend that interviewers should not lie to suspects. Their apparently ethical approach falls down when they recommend how suspects should be advised of their legal rights: Do not make a big issue of advising the suspect of his rights. Do it quickly, do it briefly, and do not repeat it (p. 17).

Zimbardo (1967) argued, on the basis of his early review of American police training manuals, that the techniques recommended were psychologically sophisticated and ‘coercive’. He went as far as to suggest that they were an infringement of the suspect’s dignity and fundamental rights, and might result in a false confession. This was an important early acknowledgement that psychologically manipulative and deceptive interrogation techniques have the potential to cause false confessions to occur. This potential risk of false confessions occurring during custodial interrogation was extensively discussed in The Psychology of Interrogations, Confessions and Testimony (Gudjonsson, 1992a). Subsequently a number of American scientists have written extensively about the potential dangers of coercive interrogation techniques. These include Kassin (1998), Leo (1998, 2001a), Leo and Ofshe (1998a), McCann (1998), Ofshe and Leo (1997a, 1997b), Underwager and Wakefield (1992), Wakefield and Underwager (1998) and Wrightsman and Kassin (1993). The opposing views of Zimbardo and the authors of police interrogation manuals are the result of looking at police interrogation from different perspectives. Police interrogation manuals base their techniques on instinctive judgements and experience, whilst psychologists such as Zimbardo view the recommended techniques within the framework of what is known in the literature about the psychology of attitudes, compliance and obedience. The fundamental problem is the lack of scientific research into the police interrogation process and the techniques utilized. Recent research in Britain and America into police interrogation techniques has significantly advanced our knowledge in this very important area. These studies will be discussed in this and subsequent chapters.

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THE REID TECHNIQUE The ‘Reid Technique’ is described in detail by Inbau, Reid and Buckley (1986) and Inbau et al. (2001). The first edition to this manual was published by Inbau and Reid (1962). These authors had previously published similar books on interrogation under a different title (Inbau, 1942, 1948; Inbau & Reid, 1953). There was a second edition of the present book published in 1967 and the third edition, published in 1986 by Inbau, Reid and Buckley. The third edition gave the up-to-date state of the art of interrogation and introduced an important legal section and an appendix on the psychology of interrogation (Jayne, 1986). Important differences existed between the three editions, but the third edition was psychologically most sophisticated (Leo, 1992). It introduced a nine-step method aimed at breaking down the resistance of reluctant suspects and making them confess, referred to as the “Reid Technique”. Inbau et al. (2001) have recently published a fourth edition of the book, which builds on the previous work of the authors, updates it and introduces new topics, such as false confessions, guidance to court room testimony and responses to defence experts’ criticisms of their work. In the introduction to their new book Inbau and his colleagues set out their working principles and disclaimer: To protect ourselves from being misunderstood, we want to make it unmistakably clear that we are unalterably opposed to the so-called third degree, even on suspects whose guilt seems absolutely certain and who remain steadfast in their denials. Moreover, we are opposed to the use of any interrogation tactic or technique that is apt to make an innocent person confess. We are opposed, therefore, to the use of force, threats of force, or promises of leniency. We do approve, however, of psychological tactics and techniques that may involve trickery and deceit; they are not only helpful but frequently indispensable in order to secure incriminating information from the guilty or to obtain investigative leads from otherwise uncooperative witnesses or informants (Inbau et al., 2001, p. xii).

I have two comments to make on the above disclaimer. First, it seems rather half-hearted and defensive with regard to their approval of trickery and deceit. Their use of the word ‘may’ is misleading, because there is nothing ‘may’ about it. Their recommended tactics and techniques do involve trickery and deceit. It is an essential part of the Reid Technique, as will become evident from reading a description of their recommended techniques. Elsewhere two of the authors (Jayne & Buckley, 1991) go as far as to state that not only are trickery and deceit justified, they are ‘absolutely essential in discovering the facts’. Second, the authors’ reassurance that they disapprove of ‘the use of force, threats of force, or promises of leniency’, is not entirely correct when their techniques are carefully scrutinized. Admittedly, they do not recommend physical threats and force, but there is considerable psychological manipulation and pressure applied by the Reid Technique to break down resistance. This is perhaps best illustrated by their article in the Prosecutor (Jayne & Buckley, 1991), where the authors are more forthcoming about the nature of their techniques than in the more cautiously worded fourth edition of their book. For example, at one point


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in the article they imply, if not openly admit, the importance of uses of promises of leniency: Because of this, after a suspect confesses—even though he or she acknowledges committing the crime—this suspect is likely to believe that because the crime was somewhat justified, or could have been much worse, he or she should receive some special consideration.

The basic assumptions made by Inbau and his colleagues are the following.

r r r

Many criminal investigations can only be solved by obtaining a confession. Unless offenders are caught in the commission of a crime they will ordinarily not give a confession unless they are interrogated over an extended period of time in private, using persuasive techniques comprised of trickery, deceit and psychological manipulation. To break down resistance interrogators will need to employ techniques which would in the eyes of the public normally be seen as unethical: Of necessity, therefore, investigators must deal with criminal suspects on a somewhat lower moral plane than upon which ethical, law-abiding citizens are expected to conduct their everyday affairs (Inbau et al., 2001, p. xvi).

The Reid Technique is broadly based on two processes.

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Breaking down denials and resistance. Increasing the suspect’s desire to confess.

Inbau et al. recommend that prior to the interrogation proper suspects are interviewed, preferably in a non-custodial setting where they do not have to be informed of their legal rights. The purpose of this non-accusatory interview is for the investigator to establish rapport and trust, trick the suspect into a false sense of security through malingered sincerity, gather detailed information about the suspect and his background, which can be used to break down resistance during subsequent interrogation, determining by observations of verbal and non-verbal signs whether or not the suspect is guilty, and offering the suspect the opportunity of telling the truth without confrontation. Once these objectives have been achieved, and the investigator is ‘definite or reasonably certain’ about the suspect’s guilt, the interrogation proper commences. Inbau et al. recommend that the same investigator should ideally conduct both the interview and the interrogation. During this pre-interrogation interview a polygraph examination may be conducted on the suspect. The results, if unfavourable, are then used to confront the suspect with his apparent lies and this often proves effective in eliciting confessions (Gudjonsson, 1992a). Since the work of Inbau and his colleagues is very influential and commonly used by police and military interrogators, I shall review the Reid Technique in some detail. The authors appear to have blind faith in their technique in relation to false confessions: None of the techniques or tactics presented here would cause an innocent person to confess to a crime (Jayne & Buckley, 1991).

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In Chapter 15 of their book, Inbau et al. recognize that interrogations have resulted in false confessions, but they do not associate this possibility with their own techniques: It must be remembered that none of the steps is apt to make an innocent person confess and that all the steps are legally as well as morally justified (p. 212).

The ‘Steps’ for Effective Interrogation Inbau et al. (2001) suggest ‘nine steps’ to effective interrogation of allegedly guilty suspects. These are the types of case where the interrogator feels reasonably certain that the suspect is guilty of the alleged offence. As in the case of the pre-interrogation interview, they repeatedly emphasize the importance of interviewing suspects in private. The nine steps of interrogation were apparently developed over many years of careful observation of successful interrogations and by interviewing suspects after they had confessed, although it is important to note that Inbau and his colleagues have not published any data or studies on their observations. In other words, they have not collected any empirical data to scientifically validate their theory and techniques. We simply do not know the following:

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How many confessions are obtained by the use of the Reid Technique in contrast to the use of less coercive techniques? In other words, what is the incremental value over other techniques? How many suspects falsely confess as a result of the use of the Reid Technique? More specifically, what is the proportion of false over true confessions?

The advantage of interviewing suspects after they have confessed is that the interrogator can learn more about the processes and mechanisms that elicit successful confessions (Gudjonsson & Sigurdsson, 1999). The importance of post-confession interviews is recognized by Inbau and his colleagues and they recommend them to interrogators as a standard practice. Material obtained during post-confession interviews formed the basis for the Reid Technique (see Inbau et al., 2001, p. 392). The nine steps of interrogation are briefly discussed below, whereas the theory behind the development of the nine steps, and why they are effective in eliciting a confession, is discussed in Chapter 5. Prior to proceeding through the nine steps the interrogator should be thoroughly familiar with all the available facts about the case and the suspect. In other words, he must be well prepared before conducting the interrogation. An ill prepared interrogator will be at a serious disadvantage when trying to elicit a confession from an allegedly guilty suspect, because the tactics and techniques of effective interrogation are dependent upon the interrogator coming across as confident and fully knowledgeable about the case. Another advantage of good preparation, which is implicit in the use of interrogative ‘theme development’, is that the more the interrogator knows about the suspect and his background the more he can identify the suspect’s weaknesses and use them to his advantage when attempting to break down resistance. This is why the authors emphasize the need for an informal non-accusatory interview prior to the interrogation.


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The selection of the interrogation strategy in a given case depends largely on the personality of the suspect, the type of offence he or she is accused of, the probable motive for the crime and the suspect’s initial reaction to questioning. Suspects are classified into two broad groups: emotional versus non-emotional offenders. Emotional offenders are considered likely to experience feelings of distress and remorse in relation to the commission of the offence. For emotional offenders a sympathetic approach, appealing to their conscience, is the strategy of choice. Non-emotional offenders are those not likely to experience feelings of remorse for the offence and they do not become emotionally involved in the interrogation process. Here the interrogator uses a factual analysis approach, appealing to the suspect’s common sense and reasoning. The two approaches are not mutually exclusive and both may be used with suspects with somewhat different emphasis. Step 1: ‘Direct Positive Confrontation’ This consists of the suspect being told with ‘absolute certainty’ that he or she committed the alleged offence. The interrogator states confidently that the results of extensive enquiries by the police indicate that the suspect committed the offence. Even if the interrogator has no tangible evidence against the suspect he or she should not give any indication of this to the suspect and if necessary must pretend that there is evidence. After the initial confrontation there is a brief pause, during which the suspect’s behavioural reactions are closely observed. The suspect is then confronted with the accusations again. Passive reaction to the accusation is considered to be evidence of deception. The interrogator then proceeds to convince the suspect of the benefit of telling the truth (i.e. the truth as seen by the interrogator), without an obvious promise of leniency, which would invalidate any subsequent confession. This may focus on pointing out the suspect’s ‘redeeming qualities’ to get him to explain his side of the story, explaining that it is all a matter of understanding his character and the circumstances that led to the commission of the offence and pointing out the need to establish the extent of his criminal activity (i.e. the extent of his criminal activity is exaggerated to elicit a reaction from the suspect). The interrogator then proceeds to Step 2. Step 2: ‘Theme Development’ Here it is important that the interrogator displays an understanding and sympathetic attitude in order to gain the suspect’s trust. The interrogator suggests various ‘themes’ to the suspect, which are aimed to either minimize the moral implications of the alleged crime or give the suspect the opportunity of accepting ‘moral excuses’ for the commission of the crime (i.e. they are face-saving excuses). In this way the suspect can accept physical responsibility for the crime while at the same time minimizing either the seriousness of it or the internal blame for it. Inbau et al. point out that this kind of theme development is most effective with emotional offenders, because they experience feelings of shame and guilt. Giving them the opportunity of relieving their guilt by accepting moral excuses for what they have done acts as a powerful

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confession-inducing factor. It is not clear how useful in practice the distinction is between the emotional and non-emotional offenders, because interrogators may have problems differentiating between the two groups. The themes suggested by the interrogator are aimed to ‘reinforce the guilty suspect’s own rationalizations and justifications for committing the crime’ (Inbau et al., 2001, p. 232). This has to be presented in such a way as not to jeopardize the validity of the confession when the case goes to court (i.e. any inducements must be implicit and subtle so that they are not construed legally as a promise of leniency). Themes for emotional suspects. It is recommended that the type of theme utilized by interrogators should take into account the personality of the suspect. The following themes are recommended for the emotional type of suspects. (a) Tell the suspect that anyone else being faced with the same situation or circumstance might have committed the same type of offence. This has the effect of normalizing the criminal behaviour of the suspect and, combined with the comfort from the interrogator’s apparent sympathy with the suspect, makes it easier for the latter to confess. As I explained in Gudjonsson (1992a), Inbau, Reid and Buckley (1986) appeared to take theme development far beyond ethical and professional limits when they recommended that, In sex cases, it is particularly helpful to indicate to the suspect that the interrogator has indulged, or has been tempted to indulge, in the same kind of conduct as involved in the case under investigation (p. 98).

This amounts to the police officer being encouraged to make a false confession in order to manipulate and trick the suspect into making a confession (Gudjonsson, 1993a). It is therefore not surprising that they do not want the session to be properly recorded. Interestingly, in the revised edition of their book, Inbau et al. (2001) try to distance themselves from the above statement. It now reads: In sex offenses cases, it is particularly helpful to indicate to the suspect that the investigator has a friend or relative who indulged in the same kind of conduct as involved in the case under investigation. In some situations, it may even be appropriate for the investigator himself to acknowledge that he has been tempted to indulge in the same behaviour (p. 243).

(b) Attempt to reduce the suspect’s feelings of guilt for the offence by minimizing its moral seriousness. This can be achieved, for example, by the interrogator commenting that many other people have committed more shameful acts than that done by the suspect. This has the effect of reducing the suspect’s embarrassment over talking about the offence. Inbau et al. (2001) suggest that this theme is particularly effective when suspects are questioned about sex crimes, although it is also effective with many other types of crime. There is some evidence from our own research that such tactics are likely to be effective with sex offenders (see Gudjonsson & Sigurdsson, 2000, and Chapter 6).


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(c) Suggest to the suspect a morally acceptable reason for the offence. This includes such ploys as telling the suspect that he probably only committed the offence because he was intoxicated or on drugs at the time. Another ploy, in certain types of offence, is to suggest that the suspect never really meant to do any harm, or attributing the offence to some kind of an accident. The purpose is to ‘ease’ the suspect into some kind of a selfincriminating admission, no matter how small, which makes him more amenable to making a full and detailed confession at a later stage of the interrogation. Being able to provide the suspect with some face-saving explanations for the crime greatly increases the likelihood of a confession being forthcoming. (d) Condemnation of others as a way of sympathizing with the suspect. The rationale for this theme is that it will make it much easier for the suspect to confess if some responsibility for the offence can be attributed to the victim, an accomplice, or somebody else. The interrogator can use this ploy to his advantage by exploiting the readiness of many suspects to attribute partial blame for what they have done to others. Inbau et al. suggest that this type of theme can be particularly effective in certain sex crimes, for example, where children and women are the victims. (e) Using praise and flattery as a way of manipulating the suspect. The argument here is that most people enjoy the approval of others and the appropriate use of praise and flattery facilitates rapport between the suspect and the interrogator. This ploy is considered particularly effective with people who are uneducated and dependent upon the approval of others. (f ) Point out that perhaps the suspect’s involvement in the crime has been exaggerated. The emphasis here is that the interrogator makes the suspect believe that perhaps the victim has exaggerated his involvement in the offence. Pointing out the possibility of exaggeration may make some offenders more willing to make partial admission, which can subsequently be built upon. (g) Make the suspect believe that it is not in his interest to continue with criminal activities. This theme is considered particularly effective with first time offenders and juveniles. It is pointed out to them that it is in their own interest to own up to what they have done in order to prevent serious trouble later in life. In other words, the suspect is told that by confessing he can learn from his mistakes and escape more serious difficulties. Themes for non-emotional suspects. Inbau et al. suggest the following themes for non-emotional suspects. (a) Try to catch the suspect telling some incidental lie. Once a suspect has been caught telling a lie regarding the case under investigation, no matter how small the lie is, he will be at a psychological disadvantage; in fact, from then onwards he has to make serious attempts to convince the interrogator that everything he is saying is now the truth. Inbau et al. (2001) make an important point regarding the use of this technique:

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A Psychology of Interrogations and Confessions . . . the interrogator should bear in mind that there are times and circumstances when a person may lie about some incidental aspect of the offense without being guilty of its commission (p. 281).

The lesson to be learned for interrogators is that innocent suspects as well as guilty ones may lie during interrogation about some incidental aspect of the offence, such as giving a false alibi because they do not want to reveal where they really were at the time. (b) Try to get the suspect to somehow associate himself with the crime. This ploy may form part of some other theme, but it can be used as an effective theme in its own right. This consists of, for example, trying to get the suspect to agree to having been at or near scene of the crime, or somehow having incidental links with the crime. This should be done early on during the interrogation so that the suspect does not fully realize at the time the implications of agreeing to his presence at the scene of the crime. (c) Suggest there was a non-criminal intent behind the act. Here the interrogator points out to the suspect that the criminal act may have been accidental or committed in self-defence rather than intentional. The idea is to persuade the suspect to accept the physical part of the offence while minimizing the criminal intention. Inbau et al. are aware of the potential legal implications of this theme: The investigator must appreciate that, unlike other themes presented, suggesting a noncriminal intention behind an act does directly imply that if the behavior was accidental or inadvertent the suspect may not suffer negative consequences. This is an attractive escape route for the guilty suspect anxious to avoid facing consequences for his crime. However, a critical question to ask is whether an innocent suspect would be apt to accept physical responsibility for an act he knows he did not commit. Absent a full confession, this is a question a judge or jury will ultimately decide based on the background, experience, and cognitive abilities of the defendant. It is our contention, however, that an innocent suspect operating within normal limits of competency would not accept physical responsibility for an act he did not commit. Furthermore, since this interrogation tactic is merely a stepping stone approach to eventually elicit the complete truth, this approach would not cause an innocent person to provide false evidence concerning his involvement in a crime (p. 286).

The above quote is an excellent illustration of self-justification for a technique that the authors recognize, presumably after being confronted with the issue in the court case they cite (State v. Christoff [1997], Fla. Cir. Ct), seriously distorts suspects’ perceptions of the negative consequences of their self-incriminating admissions. I am in no doubt that this kind of theme development is potentially very dangerous and on occasions results in a false confession (see case of Mr R in Chapter 9). (d) Try to convince the suspect that there is no point in denying his involvement. Here the interrogator points out to the suspect that all the evidence points to his guilt and that it is futile to attempt to resist telling the truth. The effectiveness of this theme depends upon the ability of the interrogator to persuade the suspect that there is sufficient evidence to convict him, regardless of any forthcoming confession. The suspect is told that the interrogator


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is only concerned about the suspect being able to tell his side of the story, in case there were any mitigating circumstances. (e) Play one co-offender against the other. When there is more than one person suspected of having committed the offence, then each one will be very concerned about the possibility that the other(s) will confess in an attempt to obtain special consideration when the case goes to court. This fear of mutual distrust can be used to ‘play one against the other’. The main ploy is to inform one, usually the assumed leader, that his co-offender has confessed and that there is no point in his continuing to deny his involvement in the commission of the offence. This can be an effective technique with certain offenders (Sigurdsson & Gudjonsson, 1994). However, this kind of tactic has its dangers. For example, in one British case a police officer produced a bogus confession and presented it to a co-defendant, who subsequently confessed and implicated others in one of the worse miscarriages of justice in British history (Foot, 1998). Step 3: ‘Handling Denials’ It is recognized that most offenders are reluctant to give a confession, even after direct confrontation, and their denials need to be handled with great care and expertise: Confessions usually are not easily obtained. Indeed, it is a rare occurrence when a guilty person, after being presented with a direct confrontation of guilt, says: ‘Okay, you’ve got me; I did it’. Almost always, the suspect, whether innocent or guilty, will initially make a denial (pp. 303–304).

Repeated denials by the suspect are seen as being very undesirable because they give the suspect a psychological advantage. Therefore, they must be stopped by the interrogator. This means that the interrogator does not allow the suspect to persist with the denials. The suspect’s attempts at denial are persistently interrupted by the interrogator, who keeps telling the suspect to listen to what he has got to say. Inbau et al. argue that there are noticeable qualitative differences between the denials of innocent and guilty suspects, and these can be detected from various verbal and non-verbal signs. For example, innocent suspects’ denials are said to be spontaneous, forceful, and direct, whereas the denials of guilty suspects are more defensive, qualified, and hesitant. Similarly, innocent suspects more commonly look the interrogator in the eye, and lean forward in the chair in a rather rigid and an assertive posture. Inbau et al. (2001) recommend the use of the ‘friendly–unfriendly’ technique (when the various attempts at sympathy and understanding have failed). The ‘friendly–unfriendly’ technique, also known as the ‘Mutt and Jeff ’ technique (Irving & Hilgendorf, 1980), can be applied in various ways. This commonly involves two interrogators working together, one of whom is friendly and sympathetic and the other being unfriendly and critical. A variant of this technique is for the same interrogator to play both roles, at different times during the interrogation.

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The purpose of the ‘friendly–unfriendly’ technique, according to Inbau et al., is to highlight the difference between a friendly and an unfriendly approach, which in the end makes the suspect more responsive to the sympathetic approach. This technique is said to be particularly effective with the quiet and unresponsive suspect. Step 4: ‘Overcoming Objections’ This consists of the interrogator overcoming various objections that the suspect may give as an explanation or reasoning for his innocence. Innocent suspects are said to more commonly continue with plain denials, whereas the guilty suspect will move from plain denials to objections. There are various ways of overcoming these objections, which are said to be an attempt, particularly by guilty suspects, to gain control over the conversation as their denials begin to weaken. Once the suspect feels that the objections are not getting him anywhere he becomes quiet and begins to show signs of withdrawal from active participation in the interrogation. He is now at his lowest point and the interrogator needs to act quickly in order not to lose the psychological advantage he has gained. Step 5: ‘Procurement and Retention of Suspect’s Attention’ Once the interrogator notices the suspect’s passive signs of withdrawal, he tries to reduce the psychological distance between himself and the suspect and to regain the suspect’s full attention. He achieves this, Inbau et al. argue, by moving physically closer to the suspect, leaning forward towards the suspect, touching the suspect gently, mentioning the suspect’s first name, and maintaining good eye contact with the suspect. The suspect will look defeated and depressed. As a result of this ploy, a guilty suspect becomes more attentive to the interrogator’s suggestions. Step 6: ‘Handling Suspect’s Passive Mood’ This is a direct continuation of Step 5. As the suspect appears attentive to the interrogator and displays indications that he is about to give up, the interrogator should focus the suspect’s mind on a specific and central theme concerning the reason for the offence. The interrogator exhibits signs of understanding and sympathy and urges the suspect to tell the truth. Attempts are then made to place the suspect in a more remorseful mood by having him become aware of the stress he is placing upon the victim by not confessing. The interrogator appeals to the suspect’s sense of decency and honour, and religion if appropriate. The main emphasis seems to be to play upon the suspect’s potential weaknesses in order to break down his remaining resistance. Some suspects cry at this stage and this is reinforced and used to the interrogator’s advantage: ‘Crying is an emotional outlet that releases tension. It is also good indication that the suspect has given up and is ready to confess’ (p. 351). They are no longer resistant to the interrogator’s appeal for the truth. A blank stare and complete silence is an indication that the suspect is ready for the alternatives in Step 7.


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Step 7: ‘Presenting an Alternative Question’ Here the suspect is presented with two possible alternatives for the commission of the crime. Both alternatives are highly incriminating, but they are worded in such a way that one alternative acts as a face-saving device whilst the other implies some repulsive or callous motivation. It represents the culmination of theme development and in addition to a face-saving function, it provides an incentive to confess (i.e. if the suspect does not accept the lesser alternative others may believe the worst case scenario). This is undoubtedly the most important part of the Reid Model and one commonly seen in cases where suspects’ resistance has been broken down during interrogation. It is a highly coercive procedure where suspects are pressured to choose between two incriminating alternatives when neither may be applicable. This is a very dangerous technique to apply, particularly among suspects who are of below average intelligence, which applies to a large proportion of suspects detained at police stations for questioning (see Chapter 3). The psychological reasoning behind the alternative question is: A person is more likely to make a decision once he had committed himself, in a small way, toward that decision. This is precisely what the alternative question accomplishes during an interrogation. It offers the guilty suspect the opportunity to start telling the truth by making a single admission (Inbau et al., 2001, p. 353).

In other words, the suspect is given the opportunity to provide an explanation or an excuse for the crime, which makes self-incriminating admission much easier to achieve. The timing of presentation of the alternative question is critical. If presented at the right time it will catch the suspect by surprise and make him more likely to confess. Inbau et al. point out that occasionally suspects will persist with their facesaving excuses, but the interrogator will usually have no problem in obtaining a more incriminating explanation for the crime by pointing out flaws in the excuses given. The potential impact of the presentation of the alternative question is illustrated by the following comment: It is important to note that even the most experienced and skilled investigators achieve a confession rate of about 80%. Of the approximately 20 percent of suspects who do not confess after being offered an alternative question, it might be argued that a small percentage of them could have been innocent (Inbau et al., 2001, p. 364).

It is evident from the above quote that the authors have great faith in the ability of interrogators to detect deception by the use of non-verbal signs: . . . the vast majority of suspects who have exhibited the previously described behaviours indicative of deception throughout the course of the interrogation are, in fact, guilty of the offense (p. 364).

The above comment makes no reference to the possibility of a false confession. Indeed, the authors are very confident in their technique:

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A Psychology of Interrogations and Confessions Furthermore, none of what is recommended is apt to induce an innocent person to offer a confession (p. 313). More to the point, no innocent suspect, with normal intelligence and mental capacity, would, acknowledge committing a crime merely because the investigator contrasted a less desirable circumstance to a more desirable one and encouraged the suspect to accept it (p. 365).

These comments demonstrate a remarkable naivety of these authors and lack of psychological sophistication. It is not just a question of the interrogator merely contrasting two alternative scenarios in isolation; as the authors point out themselves, the alternative question represents the culmination of theme development and may have involved several hours of interrogation. It is the end product of a long and demanding confrontation. Step 8: ‘Having Suspect Orally Relate Various Details of Offense’ This relates to the suspect having accepted one of the alternatives given to him in Step 7 and consequently providing a first self-incriminating admission. In Step 8 the initial admission is developed into a full blown confession which provides details of the circumstances, motive and nature of the criminal act. Inbau et al. (2001) emphasize that it is important at this point in the interview that the interrogator is alone with the suspect, because the presence of another person may discourage the suspect from talking openly about the offence. Once a full confession has been obtained the interrogator asks somebody to witness the confession. This is done in case the suspect refuses to sign a written statement. Step 9: ‘Converting an Oral Confession into a Written Confession’ This is very important because a signed confession is much stronger legally than an oral one. Furthermore, as a large number of suspects subsequently retract or withdraw their self-incriminating confession it is considered advisable to convert the oral confession into a written statement as soon as practicable. Suspects can easily deny that they ever made an oral confession, whereas it is much more difficult to challenge a written confession that has the suspect’s signature on it. The authors warn that delaying taking a written statement may result in the confessor having been able to reflect upon the legal consequences of the confession and retracting it. Inbau et al. (2001) repeatedly state that interrogators should under no circumstances minimize the legal responsibility for the offence. This is simply not true when one carefully studies their manual. Some of the themes they suggest to interrogators are based on implanting in the suspect’s mind the idea that legal responsibility will be reduced or eliminated (e.g. the act was self-defence, an accident, or unintentional). Therefore, irrespective of what these authors claim, the reality is that the themes are very much based on minimizing, in the mind of the suspect, the responsibility for the offence and its perceived legal consequences.


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Discussion Kassin and McNall (1991) argue that the interrogation techniques embodied in the above nine steps approach consist of two main strategies, which they refer to as ‘maximization’ and ‘minimization’, respectively. The former strategy, which Inbau et al. recommend for non-emotional suspects, involves the interrogator frightening the suspect into a confession by exaggerating the strength of evidence against him or her and the seriousness of the offence. The ‘minimization’ strategy, by contrast, is recommended for remorseful suspects. Here the interrogator tricks the suspect into a false sense of security and confession by offering sympathy, providing face-saving excuses, partly blaming the victim or circumstances for the alleged offence, and minimizing the seriousness of the charges. Kassin and McNall (1991) provide convincing experimental evidence to show some of the inherent dangers of these so-called ‘subtle’ interrogation approaches to the perceptions of potential judges and jurors. That is, these interrogation approaches contain implicit (‘hidden’) messages which have important conviction and sentencing implications, generally against the interest of the defendant. The experiments of Kassin and McNall are important because they show that the techniques advocated by Inbau and his colleagues are inherently coercive in that they communicate implicit threats and promises to suspects. Taken as a whole, these experiments raise serious concerns about the use of ‘maximization’ and ‘minimization’ as methods of interrogation and the confessions they produce should be used cautiously as evidence in court. Inbau et al., who cite these experiments in their article, unconvincingly dismiss their relevance to real life interrogation. When criticisms are made of their technique Inbau and his colleagues demand data and ecologically valid empirical support, but their book is full of assertions and generalizations about their technique without supporting empirical evidence.

THE FORMAT AND RECORDING OF THE CONFESSION Inbau et al. (2001) argue that confession statements can be prepared in two different ways. First, the interrogator can obtain a narrative account from the suspect, which gives all the necessary details of the offence itself and its circumstances. Second, a written confession can be prepared in the form of ‘questions and answers’; that is, the interrogator asks the specific questions and the suspect provides his answers to the questions asked. Probably the best approach is to combine the two formats as appropriate according to the nature of the case and the ability of the suspect to give a detailed narrative account. Inbau and colleagues point out that the main legal advantage of a question-and-answer format is that parts of the statement can more easily be deleted if considered inadmissible by the trial judge. Inbau et al. recommend that the suspect be initially interrogated without the entire content being formally recorded. Once the confession has been obtained, the interrogator then draws up a concise summary, using the suspect’s own words as far as possible. These authors argue strongly against the use of tape and video-recording of interrogation, maintaining that it results in a number of practical problems and would dramatically reduce the number of confessions

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given by suspects. Similar concerns were raised by some British police officers who were initially resistant to the introduction of tape-recorded interrogations (McConville & Morrell, 1983), but these have proved unfounded. In spite of being against video-recorded interrogations, Inbau and his colleagues can see the advantage in selected recording of confessions, but are concerned about the consequences: . . . while the videotaping of selected confessions may certainly be beneficial to the prosecution, the practice opens the door for wider sweeping court rulings or standards that could eventually require the videotaping of the entire interrogation along with its subsequent confession for each and every suspect interrogated. In the final analysis, would this be good for the criminal justice system? (Inbau et al., 2001, pp. 395–396).

My answer is definitely yes. The electronic recording of all police interviews and interrogations would be in the interests of justice, and it will come. It would ensure that what happens in private within the walls of the interrogation room becomes open to public scrutiny. This is clearly not what Inbau and his colleagues want. They are undoubtedly right that electronic recording potentially gives the defence useful material for disputing confessions at suppression hearings, although it does of course also protect the police against unfounded allegations. The failure to record all interrogation sessions makes it difficult, if not impossible, to retrospectively evaluate the entire interrogation process (e.g. what was said and done by the interrogator to break down resistance and obtain a confession). There is no doubt that tape-recording, or video-recording, of police interviews protects the police against false allegations as well as protecting the suspect against police impropriety. It provides the court with the opportunity of hearing and seeing the whole picture relating to the interrogation. It also has the advantage of making it easy to systematically analyse and evaluate the entire interrogation and confession process (Baldwin, 1993; Pearse & Gudjonsson, 1996a, 1999; Pearse, Gudjonsson, Clare & Rutter, 1998). In England and Wales contemporaneous recording of statements, which are handwritten by one of the interviewers, was implemented in 1986 as an interim arrangement until tape recorders were introduced and installed at police stations. Contemporaneous recording of statements meant that all questions and answers in interviews had to be recorded. This inevitably slowed down the interview process. Prior to that a taped or handwritten statement was produced at the end of the interrogation session, which represented a summary of what had emerged from the questions and answers. According to McConville and Morrell (1983), ‘The main impetus behind the pressure to monitor police interrogations has been a concern to ensure that suspects are fairly treated and that evidence of alleged confessions is based on something more than the bare word of the interrogators’ (p. 162). Since 1991 there has been mandatory tape-recording of any person suspected of an indictable offence who is interviewed under caution (English & Card, 1999; Ord & Shaw, 1999). Prior to that date routine tape-recording of interviews had already commenced at some stations on an experimental basis (Baldwin, 1993).


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The early work of Barnes and Webster (1980) showed that a routine system of tape-recording could provide an important means of ‘strengthening police interrogation evidence whilst helping to ensure that the rights of suspects are safeguarded’ (pp. 47–48). More recently, experience with tape-recordings has shown that it does not interfere unduly with standard interrogation practices (Willis, Macleod & Naish, 1988). Some police forces in England have already begun to experiment with the use of video-recording of suspect interviews (Baldwin, 1992a) and there is a move in some states in America towards video-recording police interviews (Leo, 1996a). Hopefully in the near future police interrogations in England and America will be video-recorded. An experimental project in Canada with the video-recording of police interrogations produced favourable results (Grant, 1987). Most importantly perhaps, video-recording did not appear to inhibit suspects from making self-incriminating admissions and confessions, and it provided the court with important information for assessing the reliability of the confession. More recently, closed circuit television (CCTV) is being installed in the reception area of the custody suite, in the corridors and designated cells at some English police stations to protect the rights and health of the detainee (Newburn & Hayman, 2002). Video-taping of interrogations is now commonly used in serious cases in America with many positive results (Geller, 1992). Geller found that law enforcement agencies were generally positive about the use of video-taping and found that it helped to prove the voluntariness of the confession at trial, it had led to improvements in interrogation techniques and it was helpful to use the tapes for training purposes. However, in spite of the advantages of video-recording police interviews, it is not without certain dangers, such as undue reliance being placed by jurors on non-verbal signs and the fact that even the position of the camera can influence perceptions of coercion (Lassiter & Irvine, 1986). Another potential problem is that in American cases tapes of crucial interrogations are sometimes ‘lost’, or that the first interrogation where the suspect’s resistance is broken down is not recorded (Shuy, 1998). Not being able to listen to all the interviews may give a misleading picture of what really took place during the interrogation and prove prejudicial against the defendant. The use of electronic recording of interrogations, whether audio or video recorded, is one of the best protections against wrongful convictions. However, it is not foolproof. No systems or safeguards are. Most importantly, it is potentially open to abuse and misinterpretation. This is particularly likely to happen when interrogations are selectively recorded, which is not uncommon practice in America. In other words, the interrogator only makes an electronic recording of the part of the interrogation that favours the prosecution (i.e. after the suspect has been broken down to confess and provides a post-confession statement). The danger here is that the recording will not give the whole picture of the interrogation process and may seriously mislead the court. It is essential that all interviews are properly recorded so that the court will have the best record possible of what took place during the interrogation. Otherwise it is open to abuse by the police and can mislead the court. Indeed, without a complete record, allegations of police impropriety (e.g. threats, inducements,

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feeding suspects with pertinent case details) are difficult to prove or disprove. McConville (1992) gives an excellent illustration of two such cases. The ultimate confession statement may look very convincing when taken out of context. It is typically highly prejudicial against the defendant and without the complete picture of how it came about the court may place too much weight on it. In other words, such statements have the potential of being seriously misleading to the court. Another potential problem with electronic recording is that if police officers are no longer able to place suspects under pressure during tape-recorded interviews they may shift the pressure outside the formal interview. This may happen by officers informally interviewing suspects prior to their arriving at the police station (Heaton-Armstrong, 1987; Wolchover & Heaton-Armstrong, 1991), or in the police cell prior to or between interviews (Dixon, Bottomley, Cole, Gill & Wall, 1990). Moston and Stephenson (1993) found evidence that in England interviews are commonly conducted prior to the formal interview, and this practice significantly influenced whether or not the suspect subsequently made a confession during the audio- or video-recorded interview. This demonstrates the great impact that pre-interview conversations can have on the likelihood that the suspect will subsequently confess. No doubt, many police officers will view this as a positive and legitimate way of ‘getting to the truth’ and will be tempted to resort to such behaviour in spite of the fact that they are in breach of their codes of practice. The problem is that without a proper record of these conversations or informal interviews there is no way of determining the tactics used by the police and how they may have influenced the voluntariness and reliability of the subsequent confession. In most instances no record is kept of these informal interviews, and when a record is kept it is typically unsatisfactory. Moston and Stephenson (1993) conclude: Encounters outside the police station are important for understanding why suspects make admissions inside the police station. Interviews inside the police station, either recorded or audio or video taped, contain only one part of the relevant exchanges between the suspect and police workers. The current legislation, by emphasising the importance of interviews inside the police station has resulted in a situation in which evidence gathered outside the station is seemingly of minimal value. It is widely assumed that the use of tape or video recording equipment inside the station gives a complete picture of the interview with a suspect. This assumption appears to be incorrect. The statements made by suspects on tape are the outcome of a series of conversations with police officers. The interview inside the police station is merely the final part of this process (p. 47).

THE CONTEXT OF THE INTERROGATION The context in which the interrogation takes place and the conditions of detention can vary immensely. In some cases suspects are detained in custody, even incommunicado, for days. They may be physically exhausted, emotionally distraught and mentally confused when interrogated. With improved legal provisions in England and Wales stipulated in the Police and Criminal Evidence Act


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(PACE; Home Office, 1985a) and the accompanying Codes of Practice (Home Office, 1985b, 1995) the police are obliged to follow certain stringent guidelines and procedures with regard to detention and interrogation. These are intended as important safeguards against police impropriety, false confessions and wrongful convictions. This includes restricting the length of time during which suspects can be detained without being formally charged and, while in custody, giving suspects sufficient rest between interviews. The physical and mental welfare of suspects is the responsibility of the duty ‘Custody Officer’. The Custody Officer is also responsible for keeping a detailed, timed record, known as the ‘Custody Record’, of all important events surrounding the suspect’s detention. Even with markedly improved legal provisions for detainees, it is difficult to think of any custodial interrogation that is not potentially ‘coercive’. Indeed, it is recognized by the United States Supreme Court that all custodial interrogations are ‘inherently coercive’ to a certain extent (for reviews see Ayling, 1984; Driver, 1968; Inbau, Reid & Buckley, 1986). This is because the interrogator is part of a system that gives him or her certain powers and controls (e.g. powers of arrest and detention, the power to charge the suspect, the power to ask questions and control over the suspect’s freedom of movement and access to the outside world). Therefore, it is inevitable that there are certain ‘coercive’ aspects to any police interrogation. Not only is the inevitable ‘coerciveness’ associated with the nature and circumstances of the interrogation and confinement, but the characteristics of the detainee affect the extent to which his free will is likely to be overborne (e.g. Schneckloth v. Bustamonte, 412 US 218). In Miranda v. Arizona (384 US, 436, 1966), which was decided by the US Supreme Court in 1966, the judges were particularly critical of the psychologically manipulative techniques recommended by the leading interrogation manual of Inbau and Reid (1962), which had substituted physical coercion with psychological coercion as a way of obtaining confessions from reluctant suspects (Leo, 1992). Anxiety and Fear During Interrogation Inbau et al. (2001) point out that signs of nervousness may be evident during interrogation among both innocent and guilty subjects. They list three reasons why innocent suspects may be nervous when interrogated: 1. they may be worried that they are erroneously assumed to be guilty; 2. they may be worried about what is going to happen to them whilst in custody and during interrogation; 3. they may be concerned that the police may discover some previous transgressions. Inbau et al. speculate that the main difference between the anxiety (they use the word ‘nervousness’) of innocent and guilty suspects is the duration of the anxiety. That is, the anxiety of innocent suspects, unlike that of guilty suspects, diminishes as the interrogation progresses. There is no empirical support for this claim. This will undoubtedly depend on the nature of the interrogation

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and custodial confinement, as well as on the mental state and personality of the suspect. In the third edition of the book, Inbau, Reid and Buckley (1986) argued the main difference between guilty and innocent suspects related to the degree of anxiety rather than its duration. Innocent and guilty suspects both experience and exhibit signs of anxiety when interrogated, but the latter will experience a greater degree of anxiety, because they have committed an offence and really have something to worry about. This seems a reasonable assumption, because the lying of a guilty suspect is likely to generate its own anxiety. However, there is no doubt that for innocent suspects being wrongly accused of a crime, subjected to repeated challenges and not being believed can create severe anxiety of its own, which can be misconstrued as indications of deception. Irving and Hilgendorf (1980) discuss in considerable detail the types of factor that may cause stress or anxiety in suspects during interrogation, irrespective of whether they are innocent or guilty of the alleged offence. Their work is particularly important because it relates experimental and laboratory findings to stressors that pertain to a police station. Irving and Hilgendorf describe three general classes of stressors that are relevant to police interrogation situations: 1. stress caused by the physical environment at the police station; 2. stress caused by confinement and isolation from peers; 3. stress caused by the suspect’s submission to authority. Each of these classes of stressors can cause sufficient anxiety, fear and physiological arousal in the suspect to markedly impair his performance during interrogation. The physical characteristics of the interrogation environment may cause anxiety and fear in some suspects. This is particularly true if the suspect has never been in a police station before so that the environment is unfamiliar to him. The more often a suspect has been in a police station on previous occasions, the greater the opportunity he has had for learning the rules of conduct of the setting. In addition, the more likely he is to know his legal rights (this may not always be the case: see Fenner, Gudjonsson & Clare, 2002). A familiar police environment is likely to be less stress-provoking than an unfamiliar one. However, having been at a police station before is not always a stressreducing factor, but this possibility is not discussed by Irving and Hilgendorf. Indeed, a stressful experience at a police station may result in psychiatric disability and could easily exacerbate the suspect’s anxieties and fears when interrogated on a subsequent occasion (Gudjonsson & MacKeith, 1982). This happens when suspects have been so traumatized by the previous interrogative experience that their ability to learn constructively from it is adversely affected (Shallice, 1974). Further types of stressor associated with the physical environment at the police station are uncertainty and lack of control over the environment. Suspects have little or no control over what is happening. If arrested, they cannot leave the police station until they are told that they are free to go. They cannot move freely within the police station, they are not free to obtain refreshments, make


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telephone calls, receive visits or use toilet facilities without permission. They have limited opportunity for privacy, and indeed, interrogators may cause stress by positioning themselves very close to the suspect during the interrogation. Such invasion of the suspect’s personal space can cause agitation and increased physiological arousal (Sommer, 1969). As suspects have little or no control over the physical environment at the police station, they are inevitably faced with a number of uncertainties, which include uncertainties about the fulfilment of their basic needs, and not knowing how long they are going to be detained at the police station or what is going to happen to them. The timing and duration of the interrogation, confinement and social isolation from others, are very important factors which are discussed by Irving and Hilgendorf. Uncertainty is something which has been found to be stressful to suspects who are waiting at the police station to be interviewed (Gudjonsson, Clare, Rutter, & Pearse, 1993). Irving and Hilgendorf (1980) argue that the inevitable subordination of suspects to police officers’ authority, when detained at a police station, can cause considerable stress for the suspect. Irving and Hilgendorf point out an important parallel between experimental findings of obedience to authority (Milgram, 1974) and what may happen to suspects who are interrogated by the police: . . . the parallel lies in the way both Milgram’s subjects, and suspects in interrogation, are prone to obey instructions which they would ordinarily dismiss. Under certain conditions, the subject will, against his principles, inflict pain. Likewise, we would argue under similar conditions of obedience to authority, suspects will provide information or even confess, even though normally they would not do so because of the obvious negative consequences (p. 39).

Projects researching the effects of the historic decision in Miranda v. Arizona (383 US 436, 1966) indicate that interrogation may be so stressful to most suspects that it impairs their ability to exercise their powers of judgement and legal rights (Griffiths & Ayres, 1967; Leiken, 1970; Leo, 1994, 1996a, 1996b; Wald, Ayres, Hess, Schantz & Whitebread, 1967). Stress was assumed to be mainly caused by the fact that there was a great deal at stake for the suspects. Furthermore, all four studies showed that police interrogation techniques following Miranda are very subtle and persuasive and greatly influence the decision of suspects to incriminate themselves. Griffiths and Ayres (1967) give an example of the subtlety of the police questioning: Often the pressure consisted of little more than reiteration by a detective of the same question several times alternated with small talk and appropriate urging (p. 313).

More recently, Leo (1996b) has gone even further and construes contemporary police interrogation as a confidence game: Although interrogation is fundamentally an information-gathering activity, it closely resembles the process, sequence, and structure of a confidence game (p. 265).

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The objective of the confidence game is to use subtle psychological strategies to get suspects to voluntarily waive their Miranda warning and then trick them into making a confession. The technique is allegedly so effective that Most suspects who confess, however, do not appear to see through the con (p. 280).

Anger During Interrogation Interrogation manuals generally acknowledge that anger, whether experienced by the suspect or the interrogator, is an undesirable emotion during interrogation as it inhibits constructive communication between the suspect and the interrogator. Rapport, trust and cooperation are generally considered to be essential components for the process of successful interrogation and feelings of anger and suspiciousness interfere with this process. There is some empirical evidence for this view. Gudjonsson (1989a) found that there was a negative relationship between suggestibility and anger and suspiciousness. In other words, people who were angry or suspicious when tested were less susceptible to giving in to leading questions and interrogative pressure. In his survey of 100 British detectives, Walkley (1987) found that 42% claimed that failure to establish satisfactory rapport with a suspect by a previous interviewer had contributed to the suspect’s denial. Once good rapport had been established with another detective the suspects confessed. This study supports the view that good rapport and trust are important components of the confession process. An expression of anger among suspects during interrogation is often difficult to interpret, but an important difference is assumed to exist between guilty and innocent subjects. Inbau et al. (2001) point out that innocent suspects may be genuinely angry, and on occasions outraged, about being accused or suspected of a crime of which they are innocent. However, guilty suspects may on occasions pretend to be angry and their feigned anger may be difficult to differentiate from the genuine anger of innocent suspects. These authors argue that an important difference between the behavioural symptoms of anger among innocent and guilty suspects relates to the persistence and duration of the expressed emotion. Innocent suspects are assumed to persist with their anger over time, whereas guilty suspects will find it difficult to maintain the emotion over long periods of time. In other words, Inbau et al. speculate that the feigned anger among guilty suspects will subside more quickly than the genuine anger among innocent suspects. I am not aware of any published scientific study which provides empirical support for such differentiation between innocent and guilty suspects in their anger responses. Impatience and anger among interrogators are likely to interfere with sound judgement and reasoning, which could result in unprofessional behaviour, such as the use of threats or violence. An arrogant attitude towards the suspect is a psychological characteristic which is considered to be highly undesirable during interrogation (Royal & Schutte, 1976). The reason is that, like anger and suspiciousness, it reduces the suspect’s cooperation with the interrogation and makes him less receptive to the suggestions offered by the interrogator.


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Desirable Attributes of the Interrogator Inbau et al. (2001) list a number of indispensable attributes that make a good interrogator. They draw a distinction between the required personal qualities of interviewers and interrogators, but since both are normally conducted by the same investigator the qualities are presented together in this section. In terms of personal qualities, the following are most important in their view.

r r r r r r r r r r

Good intelligence. Good understanding of human nature. Ability to get on well with others. Patience and persistence. A good listener (this applies particularly to interviewers). A good communicator (this applies principally to interrogators, who are less interested in listening and more actively involved with persuasion to break down resistance). A high degree of suspicion (i.e. it makes the interrogator actively look for deception). Even temperament and good emotional control. Good inner confidence in the ability to detect deception. Feeling comfortable with using persuasive interrogation techniques, which may be considered morally offensive by other investigators.

In addition, the interrogator should be interested in police interrogation and needs to study the range of tactics and techniques. He or she should be familiar with new developments in the art of interrogation and be aware of the laws and regulations that govern interrogation procedures. An understanding of the psychological principles and theories of interrogation and confessions is considered very important. In particular, a good understanding and insight into signs of deception, including non-verbal cues, is considered essential. This is because the effectiveness of interrogation tactics and techniques is largely based on the ability of the interrogator to detect defensiveness, evasiveness and various forms of deception, and turn these to their advantage in breaking down resistance. Interestingly, in contrast to what would normally be considered as good interviewing practice, the interrogation techniques advocated by Inbau and his colleagues rely on frequent interruptions by the interrogator as a way of feeding the suspect with themes and breaking down resistance (this of course does not apply to their pre-interrogation interview and only to the interrogation proper). The reason for this is that by this stage the interrogator is not interested in what the suspect has to say unless it agrees with the interrogator’s scenario. The interrogator has already decided, on the basis of the pre-interrogation interview, that the suspect is guilty or very probably guilty. What remains is to persuade the suspect to confess and give a written confession. No listening is required until a confession is forthcoming. Inbau et al. make the interesting and valuable point that interrogation is a highly specialized area of police work and the qualities that make a good interrogator may not necessarily be the same qualities as those that make a good

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investigator. They quote, as an example, that impatience may be an advantage for investigators in completing certain assignments, but it is a handicap when interrogating people. These authors argue that interrogation should be a specialism within police departments, implying that investigators, as a rule, should not interrogate suspects. They argue that increased specialism is likely to increase the number of confessions obtained from criminal suspects, the confessions are more likely to meet the necessary legal requirements and innocent suspects would be more expeditiously and reliably identified. The Physical Environment of the Interrogation There are a number of physical features associated with the police interrogation and confinement environment that can have major effects on the way suspects react to police interrogation. Inbau et al. (2001) describe various ways in which the physical environment can be deliberately arranged to maximize the likelihood that the suspect will confess. These include isolating the suspect from outside influences, making sure that there are no objects in the interrogation room that can distract the suspect’s attention, sitting close to the suspect, and having colleagues surreptitiously observing the interview behind a one-way mirror for suspects’ signs of vulnerabilities. An excellent experimental illustration of the powerful emotional reactions of normal and healthy individuals to custodial confinement is seen in the classic study of Haney, Banks and Zimbardo (1973). Twenty-one Stanford University students were assigned to either a ‘guard’ or a ‘prisoner’ condition in a simulated prison environment. The purpose of the study was to analyse closely the behaviour and reactions of the two experimental groups to the respective roles over a two week period. The study had to be terminated after six days because of the severe distress and emotional disturbance of about half of the ‘prisoners’. This was in spite of the fact that all the subjects had been carefully selected for the study because of their emotional stability. The typical reactions of the ‘prisoners’ comprised ‘passivity, dependency, depression, helplessness and selfdeprecation’ (p. 89). The relevant processes that brought about these reactions were described by the authors as: 1. ‘loss of personal identity’ (i.e. loss of recognition of one’s individuality and privacy); 2. ‘arbitrary control’ (i.e. the arbitrary and often unpredictable exercise of power and control by the ‘guards’); 3. ‘dependency and emasculation’ (i.e. being dependent on the ‘guards’ for exercising basic human activities). The limitation of this study relates to the fact that the ‘guards’ were role-playing what they construed as typical prison officers’ behaviour, rather than exhibiting behaviour which happens in a real-life ‘prison’. Nevertheless, what is interesting was the apparent ease with which even stable individuals become immensely distressed by ‘prison’ confinement. Irving (1980), in an observation study, emphasized the importance of the physical environment in influencing the decision-making of suspects. The


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factors he considered important included unfamiliarity with the physical environment of the police station, the effect of confinement on ‘under-arousal’, and the absence of control that the suspect has over the physical environment. The ways in which the physical environment can affect the physiological state of suspects whilst they are in police custody have been discussed in detail by Hinkle (1961) and Shallice (1974). Social isolation, sensory deprivation, fatigue, hunger, the lack of sleep, physical and emotional pain, and threats are all factors that can powerfully influence the decision-making of suspects and the reliability of their statements. According to Hinkle (1961), these factors commonly result in impaired judgement, mental confusion and disorientation, and increased suggestibility. He concludes by stating: Most people who are exposed to coercive procedures will talk and usually reveal some information that they might not have revealed otherwise (p. 44).

However, . . . the personality of a man and his attitude toward the experience that he is undergoing will affect his ability to withstand it (p. 33).

In my own experience of assessing defendants for a pre-trial examination, many complain of having had insufficient sleep prior to the interrogation. They often claim that this seriously impaired their ability to cope with the demands of interrogation. There is considerable evidence that a lack of sleep impairs mental functioning, especially if it continues for two or three days (Hinkle, 1961; Mikulincer, Babkoff & Caspy, 1989). Loss of sleep is associated with increased circadian oscillations (i.e. heart rate irregularity), lack of motivation to initiate and perform tasks, attentional problems, cognitive confusion and slowness of thought (Mikulincer, Babkoff & Caspy, 1989). The peak hours for reported problems occur between four and eight a.m. There is also empirical evidence that people deprived of sleep are significantly more suggestible, as measured by the Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scale, than normal controls (Blagrove, Cole-Morgan & Lambe, 1994). The degree of suggestibility increases with the amount of sleep deprivation (Blagrove, 1996). This indicates that sleep deprivation impairs the person’s ability to resist leading questions and interrogative pressure. It explains why sleep deprivation is apparently effective in breaking down suspects’ resistance during interrogation.

AMERICAN RESEARCH ON INTERROGATION In Chapter 2 a number of British studies into interrogation techniques will be reviewed. In fact, most of the observational research into interrogation techniques has been conducted in Britain. In contrast, as noted by Leo (1996a), American researchers have largely failed to directly observe custodial interrogations. Apart from Leo’s own research (1992, 1994, 1996a) there have only been two previous American observational studies (Milner, 1971; Wald et al.,

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1967) into police interrogations. Both studies focused principally on the effects of Miranda warnings on confessions, and these will be discussed in Chapter 6. In contrast, Leo’s research describes the interrogation techniques used and process of the interrogation. I shall briefly describe this unique American study in this chapter. Leo (1994, 1996a) describes his analyses of the interrogations of 182 suspects at three police departments. Most of the cases (N = 122, 67%) involved Leo sitting in on the interrogations in a major urban police department and contemporaneously observing the interrogation tactics used and the suspects’ reactions. Unfortunately, he was excluded from being present in some of the more serious cases, which means that he was not able to select randomly the cases he observed. In order to compensate for this methodological limitation Leo analysed 60 tape-recorded interrogations from two other police departments where he had specifically requested videotapes of interrogations involving serious felony crimes (e.g. homicide, rape, assault). The total sample was comprised of robbery (43%), assault (24%), homicide (12%), burglary (12%) and various other crimes (9%). The great majority (87%) of the suspects had previous criminal convictions and had therefore had some prior experience with the criminal justice system. As far as the current offence was concerned, Leo estimated that in about onethird of the cases (33%) the strength of the evidence against the suspect was weak (i.e. highly unlikely to lead to a charge). In a further 32% of cases, the evidence was moderately strong (i.e. probably likely to lead to a charge), and in the remaining 35% of cases the evidence against the suspect was strong (i.e. highly likely to lead to a charge). Leo identified 24 interrogation tactics used by the police. The 12 most commonly used tactics, and the percentage of cases where it was used for each tactic, were as follows. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.

Appeal to the suspect’s self-interest (88%). Confront suspect with existing evidence of guilt (85%). Undermine suspect’s confidence in denial of guilt (43%). Identify contradictions in suspect’s story (42%). Any Behavioural Analysis Interview question (40%). Appeal to the importance of cooperation (37%). Offer moral justifications/psychological excuses (34%). Confront suspect with false evidence of guilt (30%). Use praise or flattery (30%). Appeal to the detective’s expertise/authority (29%). Appeal to the suspect’s conscience (23%). Minimize the moral seriousness of the offence (22%).

Many of the tactics were used in combination, with several tactics being used during each interrogation. The average number of tactics per interrogation was 5.6. According to Leo, interrogators typically began by confronting the suspect with the evidence against him, followed by implying his guilt and then undermining his denial of involvement in the offence, while identifying contradictions in the suspect’s story or alibi, appealing to his self-interest and conscience and


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providing moral justifications and psychological excuses. This suggests a combination of tactics, which resulted in 41.8% of the suspects making admissions (i.e. admitted at least to some of the elements of the crime), and a further 22.5% provided self-incriminating statements while not directly admitting to the crime. This means that 64% of the suspects provided self-incriminating statements, which could be used against them in court. Leo concludes that the four most successful interrogation tactics in terms of obtaining a confession were the following (the success rate for each tactic is in parenthesis). 1. 2. 3. 4.

Appeal to the suspect’s conscience (97%). Identify contradictions in suspect’s story (91%). Use praise or flattery (91%). Offer moral justifications/psychological excuses (90%).

The greater the number of tactics used and the longer the duration of the interrogation, the significantly more likely the suspect was to make a confession. Interestingly, most of the interviews (70%) were completed within one hour and only eight per cent lasted more than two hours. As far as coercive interviewing is concerned, Leo found that coercion was present in only four (2%) of the cases. He used ten conditions as possible indicators of coercion, and at least one had to be present for the interrogation to be deemed coercive. These included failure of the police to issue the Miranda warning, the use of threats and inducements, unrelenting and hostile questioning, the interrogation lasting more than six hours, and the suspect’s will being overborne by some other factor or combination of factors. In terms of the outcome of cases within the criminal justice system, suspects who gave self-incriminating statements to the police were 20% more likely to be charged than the other suspects, 25% more likely to plea bargain and 26% more likely to be convicted. This gives strong support for the view that self-incriminating statements are important in determining the outcome of the case. Once a confession is made the negative outcome for the suspect is likely to be greatly enhanced. The main conclusions from this study are that police officers typically employ some of the techniques recommended by Inbau, Reid and Buckley (1986), these techniques can be highly effective in obtaining confessions, they rarely amount to coercive questioning as defined by Leo and the self-incriminating statements obtained during interrogation significantly affect the outcome of the case in terms of an increased likelihood of being charged, and convicted. In view of the inherently coercive nature of the Reid Technique of interrogation, the low level of coercion observed by Leo is noteworthy. One would have expected a much higher level of coercion. There could be a number of explanations for this. First, Leo was excluded from observing the most serious cases, where coercion was more likely to be present, and he was not able to select cases at random. Second, Leo’s presence during the interrogation may have resulted in less coercive tactics being used by the police than would otherwise have been the case. Third, the 60 video-recorded interrogations may not have been randomly selected by the police. Fourth, Leo’s criteria for defining coercion may have been

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too stringent. The alternative, of course, is that the most coercive components of the Reid Technique are not commonly practised in the police districts where the study took place. Unfortunately, Leo does not present data on how many of the suspects confessed at the beginning of the interrogation, and what proportion confessed due to persuasive police interrogation after making an initial denial.

HOW THINGS CAN GO WRONG DURING INTERROGATION The main purpose of interrogation is to gather valid information and factual accounts from suspects in an ethical and legally accepted fashion. The purpose, scope and nature of the interview will depend on the circumstances of the case and who is being interviewed. Often suspects are unforthcoming with the relevant information that the police require and remain deceptive, evasive and defensive. When this is the case the police may need to be persuasive in their questioning in order to obtain a complete and truthful account of events. The extent to which the police can legally use psychological pressure and manipulation varies from country to country, and even within a given country this may vary over time (Gudjonsson, 1995a; Conroy, 2000). Police interrogation can go ‘wrong’ in the sense that it results in ‘undesirable consequences’ for the criminal justice system or the suspect (Gudjonsson, 1994c). There are a number of ways in which this can happen and I shall discuss these briefly below. 1. False confessions due to coercion. False confessions can happen when police officers wrongly assume that the suspect is guilty (e.g. by their having blind faith in their ability to detect deception through non-verbal signs) and feel justified in coercing a confession from the suspect. This is not to say that false confessions do not happen without coercion or police impropriety. In fact, it will be shown in later chapters that they do. However, the greater the pressure suspects are placed under during interrogation the greater the likelihood that false confessions will occur. My concern is that some police officers have blind faith in their ability to detect deception, and the interrogation manual by Inbau et al. (2001) encourages such a myth. The empirical evidence clearly shows that non-verbal signs are unreliable indicators of deception (Ekman, 1992; Kassin & Fong, 1999; Vrij, 2000, 2001), although recent research into micro-momentary facial expressions of emotions are looking promising for the future (Frank & Ekman, 1997; Stubbs & Newberry, 1998). 2. Inadmissible confessions. When confessions are coerced by the police there is a risk of the evidence being ruled inadmissible when the case goes to court, even if the confession is true. Confessions are commonly disputed in court and if it can be proved that the confession was obtained by police impropriety and or coercion then it is of no evidential value. Obtaining a confession should not be viewed as a substitute for a good criminal investigation.


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3. Coerced confessions resulting in resentment. There is considerable evidence that coercive and manipulative interrogation techniques, such as those recommended by Inbau et al. (2001), often cause resentment and bitterness among offenders, which may last over many years (Gudjonsson & Bownes, 1992; Gudjonsson & Petursson, 1991; Gudjonsson & Sigurdsson, 1999). Suspects do resent being tricked, deceived and coerced by the police and this may influence how likely they are to dispute the confession when their case goes to court. In contrast, when offenders confess because the other evidence against them is strong and where they have an internal need to confess, they view their confession more favourably (Gudjonsson & Sigurdsson, 1999). 4. Coercion resulting in post-traumatic stress disorder. Studies into the psychological effects of torture (e.g. Basoglu et al., 1994; Daly, 1980; Forrest, 1996; Gonsalves, Torres, Fischman, Ross & Vargas, 1993), show that many survivors suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). I am not aware of any similar research being conducted into the psychological effects of police arrest, confinement and interrogation. However, a study of the interrogation techniques of the British police officers in Northern Ireland in the early 1970s indicated that some detainees suffered from PTSD as a result of their ordeal (Shallice, 1974). Similarly, Hinkle (1961) has argued that harsh interrogation techniques can cause serious mental disturbance in some suspects. Undoubtedly, being arrested, detained and interrogated is a very stressful experience for some suspects. Gudjonsson et al. (1993) found that about 20% of suspects detained for a police interview scored abnormally high on the Spielberger State Anxiety Inventory (Spielberger, 1983). In addition, a clinical interview indicated that about one-third of the suspects were in an abnormal mental state which might have interfered with their ability to cope with the interrogation. How suspects may be traumatized by being arrested detained and interrogated, and the long-term sequelae of the experience, are unknown. Gudjonsson and MacKeith (1982) discuss two cases where suspects had been traumatized by being arrested by the police and interrogated. In such cases it is difficult to separate the individual effects of the arrest, confinement and interrogation. The humiliation of being arrested and detained may be sufficient to cause post-traumatic stress disorder in vulnerable individuals (Gudjonsson, 1996b). This can be illustrated by two cases seen by the present author. Both individuals, a man and a woman, were perfectionists and their identity was very much associated with being honest and respected. Neither person was charged with any offences by the police, but they were arrested and kept in custody for several hours before their innocence was established. The feeling of shock and humiliation associated with the arrest and confinement resulted in persistent symptoms which were consistent with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In other cases it was the police interrogation itself which resulted in PTSD. For example, two alibi witnesses to a major crime were pressured and threatened by the police to alter their evidence, which they resisted. Both subsequently

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experienced major problems with intrusive thoughts and other symptoms of PTSD concerning the police interrogation, which lasted for several years before they sought treatment. 5. Undermining public confidence. Leo (1992) suggests that coercive and manipulative police interrogation techniques may undermine the public confidence in the police and encourage police corruption. Indeed, there is evidence that in England a series of miscarriage of justice cases involving coerced confessions have undermined the public faith in the police and the judiciary as a whole (Royal Commission on Criminal Justice Report, 1993; Williamson, 1994). Such a situation may make jurors highly sceptical of police and confession evidence and increase the acquittal rate (Robbins, 2001, 2002). 6. The ‘boomerang effect’. Coercing suspects to confess may sometimes result in the opposite effects intended by the police. Thus, suspects who would have confessed in their own time refuse to confess when they feel they are being rushed or unfairly treated by the police. In other instances, suspects who have already confessed may retract their confession when they feel they are pressured too much to provide further information. These phenomena can be explained in terms of ‘reactance theory’ (Brehm, 1966; Brehm & Brehm, 1981). That is, when people perceive that their freedom to choose or act is threatened they may respond by becoming increasingly assertive. In exceptional cases this may result in the so-called ‘boomerang’ effect. This means that people may not only become less suggestible and compliant when pressurized, but they take the opposite view to that communicated by the interrogator (i.e. they react in an extremely resistant way). Gudjonsson (1995b) discusses how this can happen in real life police interrogations when suspects feel they have been pressured too much. The consequences may be devastating for the police when the case goes to court and judges rule the confession statement as being inadmissible.

CONCLUSIONS The techniques recommended in police interrogation manuals, such as that of Inbau et al. (2001), are based on ‘psychological principles’ that undoubtedly can be immensely effective in influencing the beliefs and decision-making of suspects during interrogation. What we do not know is the rate of ‘true’ and ‘false’ confessions elicited, respectively, and how these rates compare with less coercive techniques. The basic ingredient of the techniques involves the interrogator being able to ‘read’ the signs of suspects’ lying and ‘guilt’, which forms the justification for manipulating them into confessing by playing on their vulnerabilities and using trickery and deceit. The main persuasive ingredients involve exaggeration or misrepresentation of the evidence against the suspect (‘maximization’) and theme development (‘minimization’). The interrogator suggests various ‘themes’ to the suspect which are aimed at minimizing either the seriousness of the crime (e.g. pretending it was an accident, committed


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in self-defence, or unintentional) or the responsibility for it (e.g. blaming the victim or circumstances). The potentially most dangerous part of the Reid Technique relates to suspects being pressured to choose between two incriminating alternatives, one with obviously very serious consequences and the other with more ambiguous, and by implication, less serious consequences (i.e. that the act was an unintentional, accidental, self-defence). There are potential problems with these techniques. The first relates to the nature and extent of psychological coercion involved. There is no doubt that these techniques are inherently coercive in the sense that their objective is to overcome the suspects’ resistance and will-power not to incriminate themselves. In other words, suspects are manipulated and persuaded to confess when they would otherwise not have done so. It is, of course, perfectly true that no police interrogation is completely free of coercion, nor will it ever be. Furthermore, a certain amount of persuasion is often needed for effective interrogation. The real issue is about the extent and nature of the manipulation and persuasion used. What is legally allowed varies from country to country, between different jurisdictions, and within jurisdictions over time. Another problem relates to ethical and professional issues. Many of the tactics and techniques recommended encourage the police officer to employ trickery, deceit and dishonesty. Although such measures are commonly allowed in American courts, they raise very serious questions about the ethical nature of this form of interrogation. Public awareness of this kind of police behaviour must inevitably undermine the public’s respect for the professionalism of police officers. Deception and trickery will also cause resentment among suspects and are likely to increase the likelihood that the confession will be disputed at trial. Innocent suspects may be manipulated to confess falsely, and in view of the subtlety of the techniques utilized innocent suspects may actually come to believe that they are guilty. Inbau et al. state that their techniques, when applied in accordance with their recommendations, do not result in a false confession. This is simply not true. There is ample evidence that their advocated techniques do on occasions lead to false confessions. How often this happens we do not know. Their failure to accept the possibility that false confessions can occur shows either a limited insight into the potentially deleterious effects of their techniques, or reluctance to face the reality that their recommended techniques do on occasion result in false confessions. Finally, all police manuals are based on experience rather than objective and scientific data. Experience is invaluable to police work and its usefulness is illustrated by the effectiveness of the techniques recommended. However, relying solely upon experience in determining procedure may create serious pitfalls (e.g. untested assumptions) and fail to bring to light important facts about human behaviour, such as the susceptibility of some suspects to give erroneous information when placed under interrogative pressure. What is needed is more research into the effectiveness and pitfalls of different interrogation techniques.

CHAPTER 2

Interrogation in Britain In Chapter 1 the focus was primarily on American interrogation manuals. In contrast to North America, where many interrogation manuals and training courses have been available for several decades, until the early 1990s there was no national training in interrogation being offered to British police officers. Indeed, 20 years ago in their review of current practice for the Royal Commission on Criminal Procedure (1981), Irving and Hilgendorf (1980) cite evidence from the Association of Chief Police Officers of England, Wales and Northern Ireland that . . . police officers receive no formal training in the art of interrogation. They are given some advice, in addition to instruction on the law, at training school and by colleagues but by and large skills develop through experience (Irving & Hilgendorf, 1980, p. 52).

Irving and Hilgendorf also commented on the absence of published research on police interrogation in England and Wales. However, following their review there have been several major research projects carried out in Britain into interrogation techniques. First, Irving (1980) looked closely at the current practice of interrogation at one police station in England. This study has been replicated twice (Irving & McKenzie, 1989). Second, Softley (1980) carried out an observational study in four English police stations. Third, Walsh (1982) carried out a very limited study into police interrogation practices of suspected terrorists in Northern Ireland. Fourth, researchers at the University of Kent have analysed tape-recordings of real-life police interviews and written extensively about their research (Moston, 1990a; Moston & Engelberg, 1993; Moston & Stephenson, 1992, 1993; Moston, Stephenson & Williamson, 1992, 1993; Sear & Stephenson, 1997; Williamson, 1990, 1993, 1994). Fifth, Baldwin (1993) evaluated the interview techniques used by English police officers at six police stations by analysing 600 tape-recorded interviews. These studies will be reviewed in this chapter. In addition, English training manuals will be briefly discussed as well as current training in police interviewing. In addition to the above studies, Pearse and Gudjonsson (1996a) analysed the techniques used by police officers at two South London police stations from tape recordings of interviews. They subsequently extended their research to investigate the techniques used by officers to move suspects in serious cases

Interrogation in Britain

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from an initial denial to a full confession (Pearse, 1997; Pearse & Gudjonsson, 1999). These studies will be discussed in detail in Chapters 3 and 4.

IRVING’S STUDIES Irving (1980) and Irving and McKenzie (1989) carried out observational studies of suspects who were being interviewed by the police in Brighton, which is on the south coast of England. There were three studies in total, carried out in 1979, 1986 and 1987. The background to these studies is that in 1979 Barrie Irving, at the request of the Royal Commission on Criminal Procedure, undertook a field study of interrogation practice and procedure of an English Criminal Investigation Department (Irving, 1980). The Royal Commission on Criminal Procedure (1981) was appointed in February 1978. Its terms of reference were to study and make recommendations on the process of pre-trial procedures in England and Wales. The main impetus behind the setting up of the Royal Commission on Criminal Procedure was the result of the Confait Inquiry by Sir Henry Fisher (Fisher, 1977). Sir Henry Fisher had expressed serious concerns about the circumstances surrounding the confessions of three psychologically vulnerable suspects and these concerns were taken up by the Royal Commission (see Chapter 7 for a detailed discussion of the Confait case). The nature and fairness of custodial interrogation was at the heart of the Commission’s concerns. As a result they commissioned reviews and empirical studies into police interrogation (Irving, 1990). Irving and Hilgendorf (1980) were asked to consider a decision-making model of the interrogation process. Irving (1980) carried out an empirical investigation into current practice of interrogation techniques and psychological vulnerabilities. The main aim was to find out ‘What actually goes on in English interview rooms during the interrogation of suspects?’ (p. 81). Irving’s First Observational Study Irving (1980) observed the interviews of suspects and recorded the tactics used by interrogators. Irving also carefully monitored the mental state of the suspects prior to and during the police interviews. Over a six-month period 76 interviews involving 60 suspects were observed. Although interviews in only one police station were observed, the study gave important information about various aspects of the police interview process. Thirty-three suspects (55%) were interviewed within 3 hours of arriving at the police station and 48 (80%) within 8 hours. Long delays were typically caused by the unfitness of the suspect to be interviewed (e.g. severe intoxication, a psychotic episode). Forty-three (81%) of the suspects were interviewed only once or twice. The average interview lasted 76 minutes (range 5–382 minutes) and the average length in police custody was 12 hours (range 50 minutes to over 26 hours). According to Irving, the main purpose of the interrogation was to obtain a confession, either as the main evidence in the case or as subsidiary

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evidence. It was considered in the majority of cases to be central to the police investigation. Even when there was forensic, documentary or witness statement evidence against the suspect, a confession helped to secure a conviction and often provided evidence about other crimes which could be ‘cleared up’. Out of the 60 suspects, 35 (58%) made self-incriminating admissions during the interviews observed. A further four suspects confessed after the interviews were terminated. Below are the main findings from Irving’s observations concerning the impact of custody, the interrogation itself and the suspects’ mental state whilst being interrogated. 1. The effects of custody. Many suspects showed distress and seemed to be in an abnormal mental state before their interrogation. Part of the distress was, according to Irving, caused by unfamiliarity with the police cells, being confined against their will, being isolated from social contact and being under the physical control of the police. The individual reaction of the suspects varied considerably. Those with claustrophobia reacted violently when being locked up. Irving believed that, for most suspects, confinement prior to interrogation causes significant under-arousal, which suspects find uncomfortable and motivates them to talk to the police. A particular danger involves the interviewing of suspects who are claustrophobic, because terminating an interview means that they will be placed back in their cell, which is terrifying for them. Irving noticed that it was the first-time offenders, and particularly those suspected of sexual crimes, who showed the greatest amount of fear reactions during the interrogation. A confession commonly resulted in almost immediate relief of behaviourally related stress symptoms, which Irving interpreted as being due to reduced uncertainty about the suspects’ immediate predicament. 2. Suspects’ mental state. Out of the 60 suspects, 11 (18%) were judged to be intoxicated or experiencing drug or alcohol withdrawal, five (8%) were rated as mentally ill and only one (2%) was classified as being of low intelligence or possibly mentally handicapped. A further eight suspects (13%) were judged to be mentally disordered. Some other suspects were judged to be in an abnormal mental state due to fear or distress concerning the detention and pending interrogation. All together, about half of the suspects were considered in some way to be mentally disturbed during the police interview. To summarize his findings, Irving stated: In conclusion, we would argue from these observations that in a substantial proportion of cases interviews are held with individuals who are not in a normal mental state. Abnormalities may result from intoxication, mental handicap, personality problems or from the character of custodial interrogation itself. However, while watching any given suspect being interviewed, the observer found it impossible to judge whether the state of that suspect would have constituted sufficient grounds


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for excluding the statements which ensued either on the basis of involuntariness or oppression (p. 136).

3. Interrogation tactics used. In about two-thirds of cases the police were observed to use persuasive and manipulative interrogation tactics in order to obtain information and admissions. Each tactic was sometimes used more than once with each suspect and more than one type of tactic was commonly used. Irving noted that each detective seemed to have a repertoire of approaches that he tended to use, which were ‘not particularly finely tuned to the suspect’ (Irving, 1980, p. 148). Irving classified the tactics used into five different groups according to their type. The most frequently used types involved the following. a. Telling suspects that it was futile to deny their involvement in the crime and they might as well own up to it. This included the use of ‘information bluffs’ (i.e. the police pretending they had more information to link the suspect with the crime than they had). A variant of this tactic was used with about half of the suspects. b. Influencing the suspects’ perception of the consequences of confession was used with 28 suspects (47%). This included minimizing the seriousness of the offence and manipulating the suspects’ self-esteem so as to make it easier for them to confess. c. Advising suspects that it was in their best interest to confess was used in one-third of all cases. Here the police implied or suggested to suspects that it was in the suspects’ best interest to provide the wanted information, for example, by pointing out the advantages of confessing and disadvantages of persistent denial. d. Using custodial conditions, such as confinement and asserting authority. In this way the police officer may influence the decision-making of the suspect. This tactic was used with 24 suspects (40%). e. The offer of promises relating to police discretion, such as hinting that accomplices would never find out who informed on them and suggesting that unless the suspect cooperated friends and acquaintances would be interviewed. These types of tactic were used with 14 suspects (23%). Irving (1980) concluded that the police commonly used manipulative and persuasive interrogation techniques, which were in many respects similar to those recommended in American police interrogation manuals. However, the English detectives did not appear to have had any formal training in these tactics and used a personal repertoire of approaches. These were not always related to the suspect’s characteristics and vulnerabilities, but were nevertheless, in Irving’s view, highly effective in securing admissions. Irving (1980) recognized the limitations of his study; observations were carried out at one police station only, over a specified period only; by one observer only; serious crimes were over-represented, and juvenile offenders were

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under-represented. In view of these factors Irving warned that generalizing from the findings might not be justified. Irving’s Subsequent Research Irving’s original research at Brighton Police Station has been replicated twice jointly with his colleague Ian McKenzie (Irving & McKenzie, 1989). In 1986, six months after the implementation of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) (Home Office, 1985a), which has had radical effects on police interrogation procedures, Irving and McKenzie replicated Irving’s original study. The interviews of 68 criminal subjects were observed by McKenzie at Brighton Police Station. As certain noticeable changes had been detected with the implementation of PACE, Irving and McKenzie decided to replicate the second study in 1987, again observing the interviews of 68 suspects. The main methodological difference between the 1986 and 1987 studies was that more serious cases were observed in the latter study. One of the main purposes of the replication studies was to look at the effect that the new legislation might have had on police interviewing behaviour. The 1986 study indicated that there had been a dramatic fall in the number of manipulative and persuasive tactics used by detectives at Brighton Police Station (Irving & McKenzie, 1989). In the 1979 sample of 60 suspects, a total of 165 tactics had been used. In 1986 the number of tactics used had fallen to 42 in 68 cases. This fall in the number of manipulative tactics used by the police was almost certainly due to the implementation of PACE, which is the first Act in England that attempted to provide a comprehensive code of police powers and practices for the investigation of crime (Bevan & Lidstone, 1985). Between 1986 and 1987 the number of tactics used at Brighton Police Station rose from 42 to 88, which may have been due to the diminishing of initial rigidity in applying the new rules or because suspects were being interviewed about more serious offences. However, the number of tactics observed was still below that observed in 1979. In the 1986 and 1987 samples, the most persuasive tactics were used in the more serious cases. Nevertheless, the rate of admissions for the most serious crimes fell in 1986 and 1987. This left Irving and McKenzie with confusing findings. They concluded ‘Either some of the essential power of the tactics used was destroyed by the cumbersome note-taking procedure, or by the general reduction in the potential of custody conditions to produce compliance or by a combination of both. The advent of tape recording will partly resolve these issues because skilled interrogators in serious cases will be able to get back to their previous standard of performance’ (Irving & McKenzie, 1989, p. 182). The main conclusion is that the new Act appears to have markedly reduced the number of manipulative and persuasive techniques that police officers use when interrogating suspects, except perhaps in the most serious cases. Interestingly, there appears to have been no overall effects on the confession rate of suspects (see Chapter 6). The main limitation of the three observational studies was the small number of suspects in each study.


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SOFTLEY’S STUDY In 1979, a team from the Home Office Research Unit, at the request of the Royal Commission on Criminal Procedure, conducted an observational study into police questioning of suspects at four police stations in England (Softley, 1980). The purpose of the study was to provide an objective account, with reference to the general ‘run-of-the-mill’ cases, of what happens to suspects from the time of their arrival at the police station and until they are put in a police cell after being charged. This included a direct observation of the interrogation of suspects. The study was modelled on a similar American study (Wald et al., 1967). The four police areas selected were from West Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Avon and Somerset, and the Metropolitan (London) Police. Softley and his colleagues observed the interviews of 218 criminal suspects, of which 187 were interviewed at a police station. Since it was impracticable to observe all the cases at the police stations the researchers selected the more serious offences, such as burglary, wounding or assault occasioning actual bodily harm. Forty-eight per cent of the suspects interviewed at a police station made a confession, and a further 13% made a damaging admission that fell short of a full blown confession. Two suspects subsequently retracted their confession, but they were nevertheless convicted. Only 12% of the 187 suspects exercised their right to silence. The observers noted persuasive interviewing tactics in about 60% of the initial interviews. The most common tactic, reported in 22% of the interviews, involved the police officer pointing to a contradiction or an inconsistency in the suspect’s statement. In 13% of cases, the police told suspects firmly about the overwhelming evidence against them. In a further 15% of cases the police appeared to ‘bluff or hint that other evidence would be forthcoming’ (p. 79). In about 6% of the initial interviews the police minimized the seriousness of the offence or the suspect’s part in it. This tactic was commonly used in cases where suspects were unduly ashamed of what they had done or that they appeared to have exaggerated views about the severity of the likely sentence they would receive. In about 7% of the initial interviews the police hinted that unless the subjects cooperated they would be detained for a longer period at the police station. The researchers concluded that the interrogators were generally fair to the suspect and rarely applied coercive tactics to obtain a confession. Unlike Irving and McKenzie, the researchers in this study did not make a direct observation of the mental state of the suspect. This is an important limitation.

WALSH’S STUDY Walsh (1982) examined the arrest and interrogation practices under the emergency legislation in Northern Ireland. The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) had refused Walsh access to the records of interrogation so instead he interviewed 60 people who had been subjected to custodial interrogation by the RUC between September 1980 and June 1981, in connection with suspected

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terrorist activities. Thirty subjects (50%) claimed to have requested access to a solicitor and of these only seven (23%) were allowed access to one, but only after having been in custody for more than 48 hours. This means that none of the subjects were allowed access to a solicitor within 48 hours of arrest. All the subjects were released by the RUC without being charged. Of the total sample, 35% claimed to have been pressured to provide in the future information about the activities of others. Almost half (48%) of the sample alleged that they had been subjected to verbal abuse by the police during their interrogation. Two subjects claimed to have been physically beaten. In his paper, Walsh quotes some official statistics, which indicate that the great majority of suspects (89%) who were interrogated in 1980 in connection with suspected terrorist activities were released without being charged. According to Walsh, the corresponding figure for England and Wales, for all offences, was between 10 and 20%. Walsh’s main conclusion was that the RUC had failed to implement many of the recommendations of the Bennett Committee, including the absolute right of suspects to have access to a solicitor after having spent 48 hours in custody. The Bennett Committee had been set up in 1978 to carry out an extensive official inquiry into police interrogation in Northern Ireland, following allegations that suspects were being beaten and tortured whilst in police custody. The allegations resulted in international publicity and condemnation. The Bennett Committee offered 64 principal conclusions and recommendations (Bennett Committee, 1979). There is a fundamental weakness in Walsh’s study in that the information of the subjects about their arrest, interrogation and detention could not be verified by either the official record or an independent source. Furthermore, the sample selected was very small and may not have been representative of all those arrested. However, it remains a matter of public record that in the early 1970s the RUC were using interrogation techniques that amounted to torture (Shallice, 1974). Shallice argues that the techniques used in Ulster, which included isolation, sensory deprivation, ‘hooding’ and other forms of torture, were aimed at completely breaking the suspects’ resistance. As a result many suspects suffered long-term mental effects (Shallice, 1974; Wade, 1972). Interestingly, the Israeli General Security Services still use similar techniques as the RUC did in the early 1970s to break down resistance among alleged terrorists (Conroy, 2000; Gudjonsson, 1995a; Human Rights Watch/Middle East, 1994).

RESEARCH AT THE UNIVERSITY OF KENT Researchers at the University of Kent have carried out a number of projects into police interrogation, which will be reviewed. The part of the work that relates to confessions (Moston, Stephenson & Williamson, 1992, 1993) will be discussed in detail in Chapters 5 and 6. The focus in this chapter is specifically on police interrogation. With the mandatory use of tape-recorded police interviews in England it has become possible to study more objectively than before police–suspect interactions and behaviour. Moston (1990a) argued that contemporaneous


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note taking resembles dictation whereas tape-recorded interviews resemble a conversation. Moston and Engelberg (1993) listened to over 400 taped police interviews which had been conducted by detectives in the Metropolitan Police Force. Of those taped interviews, 118 were analysed in detail in terms of interviewing strategies. It was found that the interviews typically began in one of two ways, which are referred to as ‘inquisitorial’ (76.3%) and ‘accusatorial’ (14.7%) strategies respectively. Inquisitorial strategies are aimed at general information gathering whereas the accusatorial strategy focused on obtaining a confession. The choice of the initial strategy used appeared to relate to the interrogator’s skills in interviewing as well as the interrogator’s assumptions about the suspect’s guilt or innocence. The purpose of the inquisitorial style of questioning at the beginning of interviews is to establish good rapport with the suspect and to find out more about the suspect’s general demeanour and reactions. Asking background questions, which are unrelated to the alleged offence, can be used to achieve these objectives. However, Moston and Engelberg surprisingly found that in only 5% of cases was there initial questioning to establish rapport. The most common type of questioning in the inquisitorial group was ‘offence specific information gathering’, and this was found in 43.2% of cases. With confrontational (accusatorial) styles of questioning the emphasis is not to establish what happened, but to obtain a confession. There are three main ways in which the interrogator confronts a suspect. First, there is ‘direct accusation’, where the interrogator straightforwardly asks the suspect about his guilt or innocence (e.g. ‘Did you stab Joe Smith?’). This strategy was found in 13.5% of cases. Second, the evidence against the suspect is presented and an explanation is required, which takes the form of either an admission or a denial (5.1% of cases). Moston and Engelberg refer to this as the ‘evidence strategy’. Third, the interrogator combines the evidence strategy with direct confrontation (5.1% of cases). This is referred to as ‘supported direct accusation’, and is the most persuasive way of obtaining a confession. Moston and Engelberg suggest that the ‘supported direct accusation’ strategy can lead to false confession among suggestible or compliant suspects. Furthermore, if details of the crime have been communicated to the suspect at the beginning of the interview, which Moston (1990a) argues is commonly the case, then it becomes virtually impossible to establish whether or not the suspect is simply echoing the information given earlier to him by the police. In other words, it becomes much more difficult to validate the confession because the suspect was not given the opportunity of spontaneously providing information that could be used to corroborate his confession. In other cases, according to Moston and Engelberg, some interrogators terminated the interview immediately after the suspect had made a confession. This prevented the opportunity of a good post-confession statement being taken to corroborate the validity of the confession. When suspects choose to exercise their right to silence the police are still entitled to interview them. The most common response to questions of suspects exercising their right of silence is by saying ‘No comment’ and in only 5%

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of interviews do they remain completely silent (Moston, Stephenson & Williamson, 1993). In their study, Moston and Engelberg (1993) found that police officers used five types of strategy to deal with the silences of suspects. These are the following. 1. ‘Avoidance’ (i.e. stop interviewing the suspect). 2. ‘Downgrading’ (e.g. shifting the questioning to a less threatening topic). 3. ‘Persistence’ (i.e. the officer will continue with the interview along the same lines). 4. ‘Upgrading’ (i.e. exaggerating or emphasizing the seriousness of the offence in the hope that the suspect will begin to challenge the allegations). 5. ‘Rationalization’ (e.g. telling the suspect that he does not have to follow the solicitor’s advice to remain silent, or that this is his opportunity to tell his side of what happened). The most common strategies used to deal with suspects who exercised their right to silence were Persistence (38.3%) and Upgrading (39.1%). The study of Moston and Engelberg was completed prior to the right to silence being modified under sections 34–37 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 (England & Wales; see Wasik & Taylor, 1995), which means that a court or a jury may now under certain circumstances draw adverse inferences if suspects fail to answer questions put to them by the police (Home Office, 1995; Morgan & Stephenson, 1994). The modification to the right to silence will undoubtedly place many suspects under pressure to speak when questioned by the police (Gudjonsson, 1994a). Indeed, there is recent evidence that fewer suspects are exercising their right of silence following these amendments (Bucke & Brown, 1997). A major limitation with the Moston–Engelberg study is that the authors failed to compare the different interview strategies with the outcome of interview (e.g. confession versus denial). This would have been an interesting factor to investigate and the authors presumably had all the necessary data. Moston and Engelberg conclude that the manipulative police interviewing techniques identified by Irving (1980) ten years previously have largely disappeared. They argue that this has occurred because of legal restrictions which make it more difficult for police officers to offer inducements as well as there being greater awareness about what constitutes psychological coercion. Moston and Engelberg argue that interrogators commonly lack the necessary skills to cope with suspects who do not readily come forward with a confession. This lack of interviewing skill has also been observed by other researchers (e.g. Baldwin, 1993; Mortimer, 1994; Williamson, 1993). Williamson, a serving senior English police officer, was very concerned about how traditional coercive interrogations had de-skilled interrogators and undermined public confidence in the police: Unethical behaviour by interrogators has undermined public confidence and left the police service with a serious skills deficit in its ability to obtain evidence through questioning (Williamson, 1994, p. 107).


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The work of Williamson (1990, 1993, 1994) is particularly important in showing the growth of professionalism in the questioning of suspects following the implementation of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) 1984, making it inherently less coercive. Williamson (1990) listened to a large number of post-PACE audio-recorded police interviews and in addition made a detailed questionnaire study of 80 police detectives at busy London police stations (see Williamson, 1990, 1993, for a detailed discussion of the questionnaire study). From listening to the tapes of interviews Williamson (1990, 1993) identified four interrogation styles—‘collusive’, ‘counselling’, ‘business-like’ and ‘dominant’. He placed these four styles against two dimensions—‘evidence orientated’ versus ‘confession orientated’ (horizontal dimension) and ‘cooperative’ versus ‘confrontational’ (vertical dimension). The ‘collusive’ style was characterized by a cooperative and problem solving approach, aimed at securing a confession. The ‘counselling’ style was characterized by a cooperative non-judgemental approach, aimed at securing evidence. The ‘business-like’ style was confrontational and aimed at securing evidence, whereas the ‘dominant’ style, which was also confrontational, was aimed at securing a confession. Unfortunately, the different interviewing styles were not studied in relation to admissions and denials. Williamson asked 80 detectives which of the four interviewing styles they identified with. Twenty-one (26%) officers identified with the ‘collusive’ style, 16 (20%) with the ‘counselling’ style, 11 (14%) with the ‘business-like’ style and five (6%) with the ‘dominant’ style. A third of the officers did not appear to be able to identify with any one particular technique. When asked which style they thought was most unsatisfactory just over half indicated that it was the ‘dominant’ style. It would have been interesting to match the officers’ self-reported style with those identified from Williamson’s own ratings of the tape-recorded interviews. It appears that the officers who completed the questionnaire did not conduct the tape-recorded interviews, which Williamson analysed. We simply do not know whether the officers were accurate in rating their own style of interviewing. Interestingly, when asked to identify the main purpose of an interview, only 12% of the officers said it was ‘to obtain a confession’, whereas 38% and 24% said it was ‘to get to the truth’ and ‘to seek an explanation’, respectively. When asked to rank order their preferred method of recording an interview 61% said videorecording, 33% preferred audio-recording, 5% preferred making notes after an interview and 1% ranked contemporaneous note-taking. This finding suggests that the great majority of officers prefer electronic recording to manual notetaking, which is reassuring in view of the mandatory use by police in England and Wales of tape-recorded interrogations. Sear and Stephenson (1997) examined the relationship between the personality of police officers and their interviewing performance. Nineteen police officers completed a personality questionnaire measuring Dominance, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Neuroticism and Openness. Four interview tapes were rated for each officer in terms of 13 skill factors considered necessary in a police interview. A multiple regression analysis revealed no significant predictors of personality factors on the interview performance. The authors concluded

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that personality is not related to interviewing performance in a straightforward way. Problems with this study relate to the very small sample size, the selective nature of the participants and the possible unreliability of the personality measure in this context.

BALDWIN’S STUDY In 1989 three police forces in England experimented with the use of videorecorders in police interview rooms. Baldwin (1992a, 1993) was commissioned to evaluate the outcome of this experimental use of video-recorders. He analysed 400 video-recorded interviews of suspects, which were conducted at four police stations. In addition, 200 audio-recorded interrogations from two busy police stations in Birmingham were also studied. The main purpose of the study was to assess the interview techniques used by the police officers. The police interviews included in the study were conducted in 1989 and 1990. There were a total of six police stations involved with 100 interviews being studied at each police station (Baldwin, 1993). The majority of the 600 interviews involved ‘run-of-the-mill’ cases, typically involving offences of theft, burglary or violence. Almost three-quarters (73%) of the interviews were conducted by officers of the rank of a police constable or detective constable (i.e. the most junior ranks). Typically there were two officers conducting each interview. In only 2.5% of cases was an inspector or officer of higher rank present in the interview. Most (88.5%) of the suspects were interviewed only once. Nearly one-quarter of the interviews were completed within ten minutes, almost three-quarters were concluded within 30 minutes and only 7% lasted for more than one hour. Therefore, the interviews tended to be of very short duration. A legal representative was present in 182 (30%) of the cases. The Interview Techniques Baldwin does not appear to have constructed a detailed coding frame for analysing what the officers said in the interviews and no details are given about the number and type of tactics used. However, his research highlights certain problems with the interview tactics used by many of the officers. A summary of these is as follows. 1. Interview formalities, such as introducing the persons present, explaining procedures and reading the police caution were often delivered hurriedly and in a casual manner. In a few cases no caution was delivered at all, and where it was delivered it was sometimes incomprehensible or inaudible. Overall in over 10% of cases the caution was delivered wrongly or unsatisfactorily. 2. Four principal flaws were identified from viewing the interview tapes. These were labelled by Baldwin as ‘general ineptitude’ (e.g. lack of planning, no


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real structure, officer lacking in skill and confidence), ‘assumption of guilt’ (e.g. as evident by leading questions and repetitive questioning), ‘poor interviewing technique’ (e.g. interruptions, failure to establish facts) and ‘too much pressure having been exerted ’ (viewed by Baldwin as unfair and unprofessional). For the four overlapping categories above these were found in 19.5, 15, 13.5 and 9% of the cases, respectively. 3. The interviewers apparently often had little understanding of the legal elements that need to be proved in an offence. Admissions were often left without clarification, because once an admission had been made the officer quickly terminated the interview and failed to obtain a satisfactory postadmission statement (a post-admission statement refers to the details that the suspect is able to provide once he has began to confess to the crime in question). 4. Police officers appeared to find the presence of a solicitor or legal representative in an interview inhibiting, and in some cases apparently intimidating. In spite of this legal representatives often remained quiet during interviews even when intervention appeared to be required. It seems from Baldwin’s research that in an interview situation police officers and lawyers are apprehensive about their respective roles when in the presence of each other. This could impair their ability to function effectively in an interview and satisfactorily fulfill their respective roles. Indeed, both professional groups appeared to exhibit general ineptitude, although in Baldwin’s study this was more specifically investigated in relation to the police officers’ performance in interview. The apparently inept behaviour of some of the legal advisors was alluded to only briefly. Ede and Shepherd (2000) have produced an important guide for practising solicitors, which should enhance their confidence and effectiveness as legal advisers at police stations. Better training of police officers should improve their skills and confidence in conducting an interview (Ord & Shaw, 1999). Suspects’ Responses Baldwin observed the predominant attitude of the suspects during the interviews and their responses to questions. Overall, 442 (74%) of the suspects were rated as being either cooperative or submissive during the interview. Only 82 (14%) suspects were found to be awkward or difficult to interview. A small minority (6%) was reported as being remorseful or tearful. A similar number (7%) were described as cocky or self-assured. Only 13 (2%) suspects exercised their legal rights to remain silent during the police interview. Over one-third (214; 36%) of the suspects gave a full confession at the beginning of the interview. A further 97 (16%) confessed to some part of the allegation from the onset. In 39 cases (6.5%) there was some change in their story from the initial position of a denial, but interestingly in only 20 cases (3%) did suspects completely move from a denial to a full confession. Out of these 20 cases where there had been a dramatic change, in only

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nine cases did Baldwin attribute the change to the persuasive skills of the interviewer. The findings suggest that most suspects enter the police interview having already decided whether or not to make a confession or a denial. For this reason most of the interviews tended to be very short. Typically, this involved the interviewer asking the suspect to tell his story and then this was followed up by a few questions to clarify basic details. Where there was a denial very few suspects went from a complete denial to a complete confession. Baldwin concluded: In very few taped interviews, then, are suspects persuaded to admit participation in criminal offences. The great majority of suspects stick to their starting position—whether admission, denial, or somewhere in between—regardless of how the interview is conducted. The simple truth is that it is extremely difficult to induce reluctant suspects to confess by methods that would nowadays be regarded acceptable. Yet many police officers and legal commentators continue to view the ‘art of persuasion’ as being the essence of police interviewing. Much public concern about miscarriages of justice is the product of such ‘persuasive interviewing’ techniques, however, and it is surely time that such techniques were outlawed. Enough is known about the causes of miscarriages of justice to demonstrate that, if the risk of their occurring is to be minimized, then such tactics have to be eliminated (Baldwin, 1993, p. 333).

These are strong words indeed. The problem is that there is a fine balance between the need for the police do their job effectively, which includes being able to obtain detailed and reliable accounts from suspects, and the protection of the suspect from persuasive questioning and possible involuntary self-incrimination. Relentless and coercive questioning is clearly unacceptable within the legal framework of PACE and obtaining a confession should not be a convenient short-cut to a criminal investigation. However, Baldwin himself clearly highlights the problems involved in determining what is a coercive interview: The tapes are, then, of limited utility in they offer no way of examining the social context (or the social ‘construction’) of interrogation. There is in consequence an almost limitless number of ways of making sense of them. Questioning which a psychologist might regard as overbearing or coercive might well be seen very differently by a lawyer attending an interview or by the police officer conducting the interview. Such assessments cannot be made objectively since there is no consensus about what constitutes a ‘good’ or an ‘effective’ interview. Such qualities are largely in the eye of the beholder. What a police interviewer regards as a good or successful interview is not necessarily what a lawyer, or civil libertarian, or researcher, still less a suspect, would see as such (Baldwin, 1993, p. 328).

Finally, since so many of the officers in Baldwin’s study were judged as poor and inept interviewers, we do not know whether more skilful interviewers would have been able to change more of the initial denials to a full confession by using legally acceptable interview techniques. Or do suspects only move from a denial to a confession through coercive questioning? This is an important issue, which will be taken up again in later chapters.


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BRITISH TRAINING MANUALS Until the early 1990s there was no systematic or formal national police training in interviewing. However, in 1982 the Metropolitan (London) Police had begun to offer a training course to officers and soon some other police forces developed their own courses (see Mortimer & Shepherd, 1999, for an excellent review of these early developments). The absence of formal training in police interviewing was raised by the Royal Commission on Criminal Procedure (1981). The Royal Commission recommended that police officers should receive proper training in interviewing techniques. This emphasis for the need for national training was taken up again during the subsequent Royal Commission on Criminal Justice (1993), which stated: The new national training in basic interviewing skills announced in Home Office Circular 22/1992, as supplemented by Home Office Circular 7/1993 should, so far as practicable, be given to all ranks of police officers (p. 189).

Walkley (1987) produced the first British police interrogation manual. This manual was clearly heavily influenced by the work of Inbau, Reid and Buckley (1986), although there were some differences. First, Walkley’s manual was placed within the framework of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, although some of the persuasive and manipulative tactics recommended for influencing the decision-making of the suspect were probably in breach of the Police Codes of Practice. Furthermore, some of its content goes against the general trend in England to place police interviewing training within the context of a social skills model rather than manipulative procedures (Mortimer & Shepherd, 1999; National Crime Faculty, 1996; Ord & Shaw, 1999). In spite of the introduction of PACE, one police force in England went even further than Walkley’s recommendations and largely adopted the Nine Steps of Interrogation of Inbau, Reid and Buckley’s (Mortimer & Shepherd, 1999). The emphasis in Walkley’s manual was very much on the interviewer learning to read the correct ‘lie’ and ‘buy’ signs and becoming an ‘effective persuader’ in order to obtain a confession. Walkley (1987) gives the following example of his recommended strategy: The interviewer will first deal with the lie-telling denials which the suspect is making and convince him that they have little or no value to him, possibly even may have certain penalties. He will hint that confession on the other hand has certain advantages. Whenever the suspect takes a step away from lie telling, he will be rewarded by suitable reinforcement ploys (p. 109).

Walkley (1983) had previously completed a Master’s thesis where he discovered that over half of the British detectives he interviewed claimed that they were prepared to use force, or the threat of force, when questioning suspects (cited by Williamson, 1994). It may be for this reason that the techniques recommended by Inbau and his colleagues are sometimes resorted to by British detectives in serious cases when confessions are not readily forthcoming (Irving & McKenzie, 1989; Pearse, 1997; Pearse & Gudjonsson, 1999).

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Unlike Inbau, Reid and Buckley (1986), Walkley acknowledged that some interrogation techniques can result in a false confession being elicited. He states: Perhaps even more powerfully, if an interviewer wrongly assesses the truth teller as a lie teller he may subject that suspect to questioning of a type which induces a false confession. Whilst instances of false confessions may not be as common as some would have us believe, there are well documented cases where they have occurred, and apart from the obvious damage they do to the suspect they also bring the police service and the legitimate practice of interrogation into disrepute (p. 5).

Walkley’s comments imply recognition that police officers can misjudge deception (i.e. they are not infallible in reading the ‘lie’ and ‘buy’ signs); when this occurs it influences the tactics they use to break down resistance, this in turn increases the likelihood of a false confession occurring, and brings the practice of interrogation into disrepute. Walkley’s interrogation handbook did not meet with much enthusiasm in Britain and it does not appear to have had much impact on police training and interrogation techniques used by police interviewers. There were a number of reasons for this, as follows. 1. Changes in police practice following the introduction of PACE and Codes of Practice for police officers, which reduced the scope for coercive questioning, and the use of deception, trickery and psychological manipulation (Bull, 1999; McKenzie, 1994; Mortimer & Shepherd, 1999; Williamson, 1994). 2. Research into false confessions and psychological vulnerability (Gudjonsson, 1983, 1984a, 1984b, 1992a; Gudjonsson & MacKeith, 1982, 1988, 1990), and the increased recognition by the judiciary that ‘wrongful convictions may be occasioned by false confessions and psychological vulnerability’ (Corre, 1995, p. 9). 3. The successful appeal of the ‘Guildford Four’ in October 1989 and ‘Birmingham Six’ in March 1991 raised public and judicial awareness about wrongful convictions arising from coerced confessions (Gudjonsson, 1992a). This was followed in May 1992 by the successful appeal of Judith Ward (Gudjonsson & MacKeith, 1997; Kennedy, 1992; Ward, 1993). These three cases, dating back to 1974, all involved major terrorist offences and multiple deaths of members of the public. The case of the ‘Birmingham Six’ led to the setting up of the Royal Commission on Criminal Justice (1993). 4. Increased acceptance by the English Crown Courts of expert psychological evidence in the late 1980s, followed by the successful appeal of the ‘Tottenham Three’ in December 1991 (R. v. Raghip, The Independent, Friday 6 December 1991, p. 19; Rose, 1992; see Chapter 18 in this book). For the admissibility of psychological evidence in cases of disputed confessions, and the introduction of the concept of ‘interrogative suggestibility’, this was the most important and influential judgment and is discussed in Part III along with other more recent judgments. 5. In December 1992 there was an important and influential legal judgment concerning ‘oppressive’ police interviewing in the case of the ‘Cardiff Three’


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(R. v. Paris, Abdullahi & Miller [1993], 97 Cr.App.R. 99), which was drawn to the attention of the Royal Commission of Criminal Justice by the Lord Chief Justice who presided over the appeal (Williamson, 1994). This concern was followed in November 1993 by another case involving ‘oppressive’ questioning from Leeds Crown Court (R. v. Heron, unreported; see Chapter 4). As a consequence of the above factors, there was pressure on police forces in England to implement a new approach to interrogation. This new approach to interviewing was first set out in Home Office Circular 22/1992, where certain principles were developed through the collaboration between police officers, psychologists and lawyers (Williamson, 1994). This was followed by Home Office Circular 7/1993, where a new training package for basic interviewing skills was introduced. Two booklets on interviewing were produced (CPTU, 1992a, 1992b) and were issued to all 127 000 operational police officers in England and Wales (Bull, 1999). One-week training programmes were set up to supplement the booklets (Williamson, 1993, 1994). The booklets, and the interview theoretical model on which they are based, became nationally agreed guidelines on interviewing for both witnesses and suspects. The mnemonic ‘PEACE’ was used to describe the five distinct parts of the new interview approach. 1. ‘Preparation and Planning’. Interviewers are taught to properly prepare and plan for the interview and formulate aims and objectives. 2. ‘Engage and Explain’. The purpose of the interview is explained to the interviewee, the persons present are introduced, the caution is administered to the suspect, rapport is established and the officers engage the person in conversation. 3. ‘Account’. Officers are taught two methods of eliciting an account from the interviewee. These are referred to as the ‘Cognitive Interview’ and ‘Conversation Management’, respectively. The former is based on the work of Fisher and Geiselman (1992) and can be used with cooperative suspects as well as with witnesses. In contrast, ‘Conversation Management’, which is based on the work of Eric Shepherd (see Mortimer & Shepherd, 1999), is recommended when the degree of cooperation from the suspect is insufficient for the ‘Cognitive Interview’ techniques to work satisfactorily. 4. ‘Closure’. Officers are taught how to conclude an interview. This involves the officer summarizing the main points from the interview and providing the suspect with the opportunity to correct or add anything. 5. ‘Evaluate’. Once the interview is finished, there is need for evaluating the information obtained and how it impacts on the investigation. The performance of the interviewers should also be evaluated, but unfortunately the tapes of interviews are very rarely listened to by police officers (Williamson, 1994). The opportunity for constructive feedback is therefore sadly missed. This is something that must be corrected in the future. According to Williamson (1994), the principles of this new ‘investigative interviewing’ approach were to provide officers with an ethical foundation for police

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questioning. Now the focus was on information gathering rather than obtaining a confession per se (i.e. reliably establishing the facts), non-coercive interviewing and accurate recording of the interview. Police officers adopting ‘oppressive’ questioning would be in breach of these national guidelines and would find judges less willing to admit such statements into evidence than they had in the past. Williamson goes even further: In future the judges will also be paying particular attention to confessions from those who expert psychological evidence could show were at risk in making false confessions (Gudjonsson 1992a). There has to be greater awareness of these issues by police officers and also a change in questioning style in order to satisfy the legal requirement for the prosecution to show that nothing has been done which could render a confession unreliable (Williamson, 1994, p. 109).

The PEACE model has undergone some minor changes since its introduction in 1992 to take into account changes in legislation (Mortimer & Shepherd, 1999; National Crime Faculty, 1996, Ord & Shaw, 1999). It will be interesting to see in the future whether the enthusiasm for police interview training continues. A number of studies have attempted to evaluate the effectiveness of the PEACE model. An early review produced favourable results (McGurk, Carr & McGurk, 1993). However, concerns have been expressed about the quality of management and supervision of police interviews (Stockdale, 1993; Williamson, 1994). The most detailed national evaluation of PEACE to date (Clarke & Milne, 2001) has raised concerns about the apparent lack of sufficient effectiveness of the national training in improving officers’ interview skills. It is clear that training alone will not assist officers in developing new skills. Many officers appear to fail to put into practice what they have learned on the course, with planning and basic communication skills still remaining relatively poor, although some improvement has been noted since the introduction of the National Training Programme. About 10% of the interviews evaluated in the study were rated as possibly being in breach of the PACE Codes of Practice. Nevertheless, Clarke and Milne remain reasonably positive about the potential value of the National Training Programme. They emphasize that since the introduction of PEACE the approach to interviewing has become more ethical and the findings from their study are more favourable than those reported by Baldwin (1993). Clarke and Milne offer a number of important recommendations for future training. The Clarke and Milne (2001) study also provides the first large-scale evaluation of interviews with victims and witnesses. These interviews were found to be far more defective than those conducted on suspects and the authors point to the absence of proper guidelines in relation to the taking of witness statements and the lack of audio or video recording of many such interviews. In 1992 there was also new legislation and procedures introduced in relation to the interviewing of child witnesses and victims in criminal proceedings (Bull & Davies, 1996). Recently various Government agencies have jointly produced important guidance about the interviewing and treatment of vulnerable witnesses and children in criminal proceedings, which will undoubtedly


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influence future practice (Action for Justice, 2001). Hopefully these will be evaluated in the near future. The miscarriage of justice cases in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and the accompanying evidence of police impropriety, may have undermined the public confidence in the police and increased the acquittal rate. From the mid-1970s to the end of the 1980s the acquittal rate by juries in England remained at about 32%, but it increased rapidly in the 1990s (Robbins, 2001, 2002). The police now have a great deal of work to do to improve their public image and the conviction rate.

CONCLUSIONS During the past two decades major changes have taken place in England in relation to police interrogations. This has occurred largely in response to some celebrated cases of miscarriages of justice (i.e. the ‘Confait Case’, the ‘Guildford Four’, the ‘Birmingham Six’, the ‘Tottenham Three and the ‘Cardiff Three’). The impact on legal changes, police practice and legal judgments appears to be unparalleled by that seen anywhere else in the world. The changes began with the Fisher Inquiry (Fisher, 1977), followed by the setting up of the Royal Commission on Criminal Procedure (1981), the research that emerged from the Commission and the changes in legal provisions with the introduction of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) 1984 (Home Office, 1985a). This was followed by the Royal Commission on Criminal Justice (1993), which resulted in more research studies being carried out into police interrogation. Scientific findings from psychological research over two decades have been influential in the development of legal concepts, legal judgments and police interview training. What has facilitated the changes has been the willingness of the British Government, the judiciary and the police to accept that serious mistakes have been made and that something needed to be done about it. Many valuable lessons have been learned as a result, which should encourage other nations to review their own practice. With the implementation of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act in January 1986, and the accompanying Codes of Practice, manipulative tactics appear to have been markedly reduced, except perhaps occasionally in the most serious crimes (see Chapter 4). It seems that the persuasive interrogation style of the past has been replaced by questioning that is less manipulative in nature and is not dependent on lying to suspects. Trickery and deceit, which are so commonly recommended in American interrogation manuals (see Chapter 1), are not tolerated by the English Courts to the same extent (however, in spite of the apparently positive impact of PACE on police interviewing, one study of Crown Court cases suggests that the new Act may have had limited effect upon police behaviour (Bryan, 1997)). In recent years, accompanying the introduction of new police training manuals and courses on interviewing, there appears to have been a general move away from interviewing primarily for obtaining a confession to obtaining

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reliable information. This represents a more ethical approach to interviewing and should result in fewer wrongful convictions in the future. Underpinning the new approach of investigative interviewing is a firm commitment to apply the lessons learnt from studies of interviewing (Williamson, 1993, p. 98).

Studies on police interviewing carried out prior to the new approach to interviewing indicate a general lack of skills among officers when interviewing suspects. There is some indication from recent research that the National Training Courses improve interviewing skills, although there remain serious problems with transferring the new interviewing skills to police practice. In spite of the new approach to interviewing, it should not be forgotten that obtaining a confession is still an important part of the investigative process and will no doubt continue to be so. Prior to 1993 only three English studies had investigated the psychological vulnerabilities of persons detained at police stations. The main weakness of these studies is that the evaluation was based on observations only; no formal interview or psychometric testing was conducted. This has now been compensated for and the relevant research will be discussed in Chapter 3.

CHAPTER 3

Persons at Risk During Interviews in Police Custody: the Royal Commission Studies The British government set up the Royal Commission on Criminal Justice immediately following the successful appeal of the ‘Birmingham Six’ on 14 March 1991. The terms of reference required the Commission to . . . examine the criminal justice system from the stage at which the police are investigating an alleged or reported criminal offence right through to the stage at which a defendant who has been found guilty of such an offence has exhausted his or her rights to appeal (Royal Commission on Criminal Justice, 1993, p. 1).

The Commission’s report took two years to complete. A total of 22 research studies had been commissioned as a part of the report. A number of these studies are cited in this book. This chapter includes a study by my colleagues and I, which directly examined the psychological vulnerabilities of persons detained at police stations through a clinical interview and psychometric testing. Gudjonsson et al. (1993) investigated empirically, for the first time anywhere in the world, the psychological characteristics and vulnerabilities of persons detained at police stations for questioning. It remains the only study that has gone beyond observational research. The study was subsequently extended to investigate the relationships between different types of psychological vulnerability (Gudjonsson, Clare & Rutter, 1994; Gudjonsson, Rutter & Clare, 1995), the interview tactics used by the police (Pearse & Gudjonsson, 1996a) and the factors that predicted the likelihood of a confession (Pearse et al., 1998). These studies will be reviewed in this chapter. In addition, I shall briefly review another study that Isabel Clare and I carried out for the Royal Commission on Criminal Justice, which focused on Devising and Piloting an Experimental Version of the Notice to Detained Persons (Clare & Gudjonsson, 1992). This study is important, because it demonstrated how difficult it is for intellectually disadvantaged persons to read and understand written material pertaining to their legal rights.

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The structure of this chapter is in three parts. In the first part, the study by Gudjonsson and his colleagues (Gudjonsson et al., 1993) for the Royal Commission on Criminal Justice is reviewed in detail since the comprehensive findings of the study are only available in the original 1993 HMSO Report. In the second part, further analyses and additional data from the study are presented. These focus on the relationship between psychological vulnerabilities and confessions made in police interviews. In other words, what are the factors that can successfully predict the likelihood of a confession? In the third part, the work on detainees’ understanding of their legal rights and legal documents will be reviewed and the relevant related research cited.

THE 1993 ROYAL COMMISSION STUDY BY GUDJONSSON AND COLLEAGUES Aims The broad aim of the study was to extend the work done by Irving (1980) and Irving and McKenzie (1989) by formally assessing the psychological characteristics of detainees while at police stations, prior to their being interviewed by the police. It was expected that the data obtained would provide crucial information about the type and extent of potential vulnerabilities exhibited by suspects detained for interviewing at English police stations. This had never been attempted before and was considered of great importance. The psychological variables chosen were selected on the basis of relevance to the legal issues concerning admissibility and reliability as discussed in detail by Gudjonsson (1992a). There was a crucial limitation, however, in terms of the comprehensiveness of the assessment. On the basis of discussions with the police it was apparent that the assessment should be limited to a maximum of one hour. This was to avoid the detainee’s detention being prolonged beyond that which it would otherwise be. There was an opportunity for testing in that detainees were rarely interviewed immediately after being brought to the custody suite and where a solicitor was requested there was commonly a wait of between one and two hours. Bearing in mind the time constraints, the following psychological variables were chosen.

r r r r r r

Current mental state. Intellectual functioning. Reading ability. Interrogative suggestibility. State and trait anxiety. Understanding of legal rights.

Another aim was to investigate how readily detainees’ intellectual deficits could be determined by superficial observation prior to formal testing of intelligence. The hypothesis tested was that many intellectually disadvantaged detainees possess intellectual deficits which are not readily detected without

Persons at Risk During Interviews in Police Custody

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formal psychological testing. Gudjonsson (1992a) had found in a number of criminal cases that even experienced clinicians often grossly over-estimated the intellectual abilities of the clients they were interviewing. Methodology Two police stations in the South East of England were selected: Peckham for an inner London police station and Orpington for a suburban, outer London, police station. Both police stations were within reasonable reach for the researchers and had the necessary facilities for the psychological assessment to be conducted. The Metropolitan Police fully cooperated with the study and a good working relationship with the custody officers and detectives at the two police stations was established. Three experienced clinical psychologists regularly visited two police stations over a period of three months. All seven days of the week were included. However, attendance was focused on periods when the police stations were likely to be busy in order to reduce unnecessary waiting time. The criteria used for selecting the participants in the Royal Commission study were as follows.

r r r

The participant was not a juvenile (i.e. was 17 years of age or above). Juveniles are automatically entitled to the presence of an ‘appropriate adult’ (i.e. responsible adult whose functions are discussed in detail in Chapter 10), irrespective of their mental state or psychological characteristics. The participant was detained at the police station for the purpose of an interview in connection with a criminal offence. The participant was not so intoxicated, disturbed or violent that it would be unsafe and unwise to conduct the psychological assessment.

All suitable suspects who arrived at the police station whilst one of the psychologists was there were asked to participate in the study. The Psychological Evaluation Prior to any psychological testing, the participant was interviewed about his or her occupational, academic, forensic, medical and psychiatric background. This was followed by questions about how the participant had been feeling mentally during the previous seven days. In addition, each participant was asked questions about their understanding of their legal rights and whether or not he or she had had their rights explained to them by the police. In the final section of the interview protocol the researcher was required to make a clinical judgement about how the detainee seemed behaviourally and mentally during the interview with the researcher (by that time, the researcher had spent about 10–15 minutes with the detainee). The items were only endorsed in the affirmative if there was clear evidence of the behaviour or mental characteristic relevant to the question. For example, the heading ‘learning difficulty’ was only endorsed if there were strong positive signs that the detainee was likely to be ‘mentally handicapped’. The reason for using such stringent criteria was that the researchers were trying to reduce the number of false positive

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errors to a minimum, although this was at the risk of producing some false negative errors (i.e. not identifying vulnerabilities when they were present). After the interview schedule was completed a number of psychological tests, including the Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scale (GSS 2; Gudjonsson, 1987a), the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale—Revised (WAIS-R; Wechsler, 1981; in view of the time restriction allowed for the overall assessment, only the vocabulary, comprehension and picture completion subtests were administered), the Schonell Graded Word Reading Test (Schonell & Goodacre, 1974) and the State– Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI; Spielberger, Gorsuch & Lushene, 1970). The duration of the psychological assessment varied considerably across detainees, but most of the sessions lasted between 45 minutes and 1 hour. Results General Background Out of 197 participants who were approached for their consent to cooperate with the study, 24 (12%) refused to take part, all of whom were male. Therefore, 173 assessments commenced, consisting of 144 (83%) males and 29 (17%) females, with mean ages of 28 and 29 years, respectively. In nine cases the detainee did not complete all the tests or answer all the questions asked. In a further eight cases the detainee was not subsequently interviewed by the police as originally planned. The majority (74%) of the detainees were Caucasian and 25% were Afro-Caribbean. The main offences under investigation were property offences (N = 102, 59%), violent offences (N = 23, 13%), and drug related offences (N = 18, 10%). At the time of the study, 120 (70%) of the detainees were reported to be unemployed, 121 (71%) had previous criminal convictions, 61 (36%) had served a previous prison sentence, 56 (33%) had consumed alcoholic beverages within 24 hours of arrest and 37 (22%) reported having taken illicit drugs during the previous 24 hours. The alcohol consumption consisted mainly of having had a few beers prior to arrest, whereas the use of illicit drugs consisted mainly of smoking cannabis, or taking heroin or methadone. Nineteen detainees (12%) said they had suffered from a nervous disorder and/or depression during the previous one year. Few sought treatment for their problem, claiming that their condition was not sufficiently serious to warrant treatment. Mental State Prior to Arrest The detainees were asked about their mental state during the seven days prior their arrest. The researchers only endorsed each item if there was clear indication from the detainees’ replies that these ‘problems’ had been present. Feeling low in mood was the most commonly reported symptom. It was reported in 74 (43%) of cases. The most common explanations given for the low mood were that the detainee had no job, no money and no sense of purpose. Low mood was followed by marked sleep disturbance, which was present in 65 (38%) of cases. It involved having problems getting to sleep, waking up earlier than

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Table 3.1. Clinical evaluation of detainees prior to psychological testing (N = 171) No apparent problems

112 (65%)

Problems: 1. Intoxicated 2. Drugged 3. Crying 4. Highly agitated 5. Angry/suspicious 6. Withdrawn 7. Mentally ill 8. Mentally handicapped 9. Major language problems 10. Stated unable to read 11. Brain damage 12. Claustrophobia

2 (1%) 12 (7%) 6 (4%) 21 (12%) 5 (3%) 7 (4%) 12 (7%) 4 (3%) 3 (2%) 5 (3%) 1 (

The Psychology of Interrogations and Confessions : A Handbook (Wiley Series in Psychology of Crime, Policing and Law)

Psychology and Law: Truthfulness, Accuracy and Credibility (Wiley Series in Psychology of Crime, Policing and Law)

Psychology and Law: Truthfulness, Accuracy and Credibility (Wiley Series in Psychology of Crime, Policing and Law)